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Chicago Tribune
25-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Column: Individual, corporate generosity continues to thrive
It's a rare Lake County resident who hasn't had a package delivered to their front stoop by a FedEx driver. The founder of the global company, Fred Smith, died the other day at age 80. Smith began FedEx Corp. as Federal Express in 1978 in Memphis, which it still calls home. A former Marine Corps captain who served two tours of duty during the Vietnam War, and a Yale University graduate, Smith was also a quiet philanthropist, as are many czars of industry. His financial support included donations to the University of Memphis, the Memphis Zoo and a gift to the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation to endow a scholarship for children of Navy service members who enroll in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) collegiate studies, according to his Associated Press obituary. 'America is the most generous country in the world,' the AP quoted Smith as saying in 2023. 'It's amazing the charitable contributions that Americans make every year. 'I think if you've done well in this country, it's pretty churlish for you not to at least be willing to give a pretty portion of that back to the public interest,' he added. That's the sort of corporate spirit overlooked by those who call for millionaires, billionaires and corporations to pay their 'fair share' of taxes. 'Billionaire giveaways' has become the rallying cry for those who want to ensure working families should not have to pay for personal or corporate tax breaks at the state and federal levels. Those who have made it big in business, sports and entertainment, already pay some of their fair share when it comes to charitable donations. Corporations, too, are ready to dip into their earnings for the greater good. Like AbbVie, based in North Chicago, where officials announced in late May that they have a multi-year partnership with the Chicago Cubs to help fund cancer research. The pharmaceutical firm, spun off from Abbott Laboratories in 2013, is involved in 'Striking Out Cancer.' AbbVie will donate $233 for every strikeout a Cubs pitcher tosses during home games this season. The donation amount is in honor of the approximately 233 Americans diagnosed with cancer every hour, according to the American Cancer Society. 'Every strikeout this Chicago Cubs season is more than a statistic on the scoreboard — it is a step forward in supporting those living with and fighting cancer,' said Tracie Haas, AbbVie's senior vice president, corporate affairs, in a statement, adding, 'We aim to create greater awareness for cancer advocacy and to make a remarkable impact for those living with cancer worldwide.' The total amount raised — which could be more than $100,000 this season– will be donated to Cubs Charities in support of not-for-profit organizations working to advance the fight against cancer. AbbVie has several oncology therapies for leukemias, lymphomas, lung and gynecological cancers. Full disclosure: Like many other Lake Countians, I know a number of AbbVie employees, friends and relatives, who work hard and enjoy their careers. They also donate their time and money to various charities in the area. If they are like other Americans, they give a lot when it comes to philanthropy. Across the U.S., charities received $592.5 billion in donations in 2024, a 3.3% increase over 2023, according to the most recent 'Giving USA″ survey, the AP reported June 24. This is in the midst of drops in federal funding, funding uncertainty from Washington, D.C., and increased demand for services from nonprofit groups. 'The fundamentals of giving are still working like they historically have in the U.S.,' Jon Bergdoll, managing director for Giving USA, was quoted by the AP. 'It is important to take comfort in that we are still seeing the same things move and shift giving that, 20 years ago, moved and shifted giving.' The AP said companies, particularly in the tech sector, pushed corporate giving up 6% last year. Individual giving was up 5%. The share of giving by each source remained stable over the past two years, according to the report. In 2024, individuals accounted for the largest share of giving, 66%, followed by foundations at 19%, bequests at 8%, and corporations at 7%. The biggest jumps in donations were in giving to public society (such as the United Way) benefit, 16.1%; international affairs, 14.3%; and education, 9.9%. Bergdoll's Giving USA told the AP that in times of crises, human-services organizations, which feed and house people, often see bumps in donations. Of course, corporations and individuals receive tax deductions for their contributions to the public good. But they aren't forced to make those gifts. Most do it to help local communities and their corporate hometowns. With federal and state governments cutting back the amount of money nonprofits have received in the past, billionaire and corporate donations are becoming lifesavers for those who depend on social service agencies to live comfortably. That's something that shouldn't be forgotten when some call for sharing the wealth.
Chicago Tribune
02-06-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
AbbVie partners with Chicago Cubs to fund cancer research; ‘We aim to create greater awareness for cancer advocacy'
AbbVie may be known to many people for its medicines like Jardiance, Rinvoq and Skyrizzi, through their television commercials, but in laboratories in a building on its 70-acre North Chicago campus a group of scientists is on the cutting edge of cancer treatment. Though there is an emphasis on blood cancers, Andy Souers, AbbVie's vice president heading oncology discovery research, said the scientists are also trying to find treatments that work for ovarian, lung and colorectal cancers, among others. Working meticulously over sometimes long periods of time, looking at human cells and the molecules within them, Souers said the scientists look for ways to kill the malignant cells to improve a patient's condition. 'We take white cells out of the body to help find ways of curation,' Souers said. 'We look for ways we can just kill the tumor cells.' As Souers and his colleagues in AbbVie's labs work to find more solutions to treat cancer, the company is increasing its awareness campaign for cancer advocacy, including a partnership with the Chicago Cubs announced Friday, which could put thousands of dollars toward treating cancer. Dubbed 'Striking Out Cancer,' for every strikeout a Cub pitcher throws during the 2025 home season starting last Friday, AbbVie will donate $233 to Cub Charities, according to an AbbVie press release. The $233 amount is in honor of the 233 Americans diagnosed with cancer every hour. 'Together with our hometown partner, the Chicago Cubs, we aim to create greater awareness for cancer advocacy and to make a remarkable impact for those living with cancer worldwide,' Tracie Haas, AbbVie's senior vice president for corporate affairs, said in the release. In the Cubs' three games over the weekend. the team's pitchers struck out 18 batters netting nearly $5,000 to fight cancer. With 63 home games left this season, the donation could approach more than $100,000. While the Cub pitchers are doing their part, AbbVie's scientists continue to look for more ways to snuff out cancerous cells. Other people at the company are doing their part, getting the medicine to the patients who need it. Lung cancer is a serious concern and receiving a lot of emphasis from AbbVie because, Souers said, it is one of the deadliest. The five-year survival rate is less than 10%, creating an urgency in the lab. 'It's a small cell and that makes it very, very hard,' Souers said. 'Our goal is to dose the patient. Once we have something which works, we go to the next generation of the medicine.' In the labs, people and machines are working together to test and retest potential medicines until they work. Emily Faivre, a senior principal research scientist working in the labs devoted to finding effective medicine to treat cancer, said the testing is rigorous before the approval process even starts. Holding a 2½-inch-by-four-inch specimen container with 384 wells — it's like a honeycomb from a beehive — Faivre said each well receives a drop of material for testing through laboratory equipment. 'It reads enzyme activity,' Faivre said. 'The molecules are very small. We need to know how many we need to kill a cancer cell.' Once the medicine is created and completes the regulatory process, with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as well as similar agencies in other countries around the world, Brian Anderson deals with the logistics of getting it to other nations. Anderson, AbbVie's vice president of product development for science and technology, said the company has established two distinct supply chains. If there is a problem with one, the other can pick up the slack while the issue is resolved. It assures a patient will get their life-saving drug. 'We supply these medicines to 175 countries around the world,' Anderson said. 'We are doing this on a fairly large scale. Thousands of people need this product.'
