Jim Thome is best known in Chicago as a Hall of Fame slugger who played for the White Sox from 2006-09. The Peoria, IL native joined the White Sox shortly after they won the World Series in 2005. Thome had many memorable moments with the White Sox, including helping them reach the playoffs in 2008 and hitting his 500th career homer at the Cell on September 16th, 2007.
But here at Children’s Home & Aid, Jim is best known for his efforts to help raise awareness, generate support, recruit foster parents, and advocate for the needs of foster children and families in Illinois through the Bring Me Home Campaign.
The campaign was started in 2007 by Jim and Andrea Thome, Paul and Jennifer Konerko, and later joined by Gordon and Brittany Beckham.
The campaign raised over $600,000 from more than 500 individual donors and directly impacted the lives of thousands of foster children. Over 1000 foster children had the opportunity to attend a Chicago White Sox game. More than 1000 back packs with school supplies were given to foster youth. Over 200 children were able to attend summer camp. Nearly 400 youth were provided back-to-school clothing.
While the Bring Me Home Campaign has come to an end, Jim and Andrea continue to support Children’s Home & Aid and impact the lives of the children and families we serve.
On May 24th, we are hosting our annual Champions for Children Luncheon. Jim Thome is stepping up to the plate once again and hitting it out of the park for Champions for Children supporters by agreeing to sign official MLB baseball bats for individuals who bid at the $5,000 level.
We can’t thank the Thome family enough for their continued support and overwhelming generosity. All of us will be cheering Jim on when he is officially inducted into the Hall of Fame in July.
Registration
To register for the luncheon:
Donate
Can’t attend? Show your support by donating:
