Mission Statement

Officers & Board of Directors

History of the Foundation

Accomplishments of the Foundation

Who We Support

History of the Foundation

Jay's World is a not-for-profit foundation focusing on improving the quality of life for children and their families who are coping with the day to day struggle that is cancer. Through fundraising efforts Jay's World has awarded college scholarships to more than 60 teens with cancer giving the recipients the opportunity to pursue their dreams. Jay's World has also raised money and found ways to ease the hospital experience of children with cancer and their families by improving medical facilities and making the hospital stay more comfortable.

The idea for Jay's World was sparked by a life-altering event in 1993 when, says founder Ralph Napolitano, �God pitched us a curve ball.� That year, Ralph and MaryAnn Napolitano's oldest son, Jason (nicknamed Jay, now 26 years old), was diagnosed with Leukemia just before his 14 th birthday. The diagnosis came, the Napolitanos say, as a complete surprise � Jason was a healthy active teenager and a five-star athlete, with prowess in soccer, football, wrestling, basketball and baseball. �This was nothing we could ever have imagined,� says MaryAnn Napolitano. For three and a half years Ralph and MaryAnn watched and prayed as Jason suffered through being hospitalized, the effects of chemotherapy including more than 30 invasive spinal taps, kidney stones, migraines, blurred vision, appendicitis and respiratory problems. He was hospitalized for months at a time, leaving Jay's parents to turn to their faith. �I told God that if he would help my kid, I would find a way to help other kids,� MaryAnn remembers.

How? They weren't sure, until one evening, at home, MaryAnn said they received �a sign.� A phone call from a woman named Angel asked the Napolitanos to donate $1 to the St. Jude's Children's Hospital � here, said MaryAnn, was the sign she was looking for � an �angel' asking me to help kids,� she smiles. The Napolitanos have always been philanthropists and helped their community members; they sent money to St. Jude's but began to hatch a plan to do more. How could they raise more money than they were able to give from their own pockets to help children? They knew that cancer is a family disease- the child suffers and families often face financial difficulties, as well as emotional upheaval. �Watching your child suffer is the worst thing anyone can imagine,� says MaryAnn, �and we knew we had to figure out a way to help other people who were going through what we were going through with cancer.�

From the kitchen table with a staff of seven family members and neighborhood volunteers, Jay's World began.