St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital unveils new Family Commons space

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital cut the ribbon Monday on its first treatment-free and clinical staff-free floor.

The Family Commons is a 45-thousand-square-foot space that gives patients and their families a home-like atmosphere, made possible by a historic $50 million donation from the bio-pharmaceutical company, AbbVie.

The Commons has space for everything, including praying or quiet introspection, woodworking, indoor/outdoor play, and private spaces called “Resting Nooks.”

Marlo Thomas, daughter of Danny Thomas, the hospital’s founder, was on hand for Monday’s event and was directly involved with the design and creation of the Family Commons.

“And that’s really important... to be able to give children a respite from, you know, appointment after appointment, and their parents, too,” Marlo said. “You know, it’s tiring and it’s scary... sometimes painful... there’s so much that they have to go through... and then they come here and get to be a kid. They get to have joy and their parents take off their shoes and sit down in a nook and, you know, have a cup of coffee... I think of the moms and dads... all of them... if I was gonna call this anything, I’d call it the family blessing.”

The Family Commons will open to patients and their families on Feb. 7.

Click here to sign up for our newsletter!

Click here to report a spelling or grammar error. Please include the headline.

Copyright 2023 WMC. All rights reserved.