CHARACTER COUNTS
Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo makes donation to Phoenix Children’s Hospital
PHOENIX – The Arizona Diamondbacks recognized Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo before the start of the team’s three-game series at Chase Field on Friday for contributions his charity made to the Phoenix Children’s Hospital.
Rizzo’s charity, the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, contributed $50,000 towards PCH’s Beach Ball 2020, which is a fundraising event held every year to benefit the hospital. The Beach Ball event raised more than $1.65 million last year in support of PCH.
Rizzo has his own ties to children battling cancer and other health issues. When he was 18 playing single-A baseball in the Red Sox organization, he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Having gone through his own battles as a young man, he recognized the toll fighting cancer took on an entire family.
Now, as a cancer survivor, his foundation focuses on funding cancer research and providing support to children and their families battling the disease. They have worked with major children’s hospitals around the country, including the Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami, Florida, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Illinois, Joe DiMaggio’s Children’s Hospital, Florida, and the Family Reach Foundation in Illinois.
The three-time All-Star is the longest-tenured player on the Cubs roster. He was drafted by Chicago in the first round in 2014.
For more information or to contribute to the foundation, visit their website at Rizzo44.com.
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