AKISAN Dallas Metro Ends 2025 With $5,000 Cancer Support After Essien Udim Hospital Intervention

The Dallas Metro Chapter donates $5,000 to Children's Cancer Research

The Dallas Metro Chapter of the Akwa Ibom State Association of Nigeria, USA Inc. (AKISAN), which began 2025 with a major healthcare intervention in Akwa Ibom State, has capped the year with a $5,000 donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the United States, reinforcing its cross-border commitment to life-saving healthcare.



The donation comes months after the chapter completed a comprehensive renovation of St. Mary’s Hospital, Urua Akpan, in Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, where critical hospital departments were upgraded to restore effective service delivery after years of neglect.

At a cheque presentation held on Friday, December 19, 2025, the Dallas Metro Chapter formally handed over the sum of five thousand United States dollars to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, to support paediatric cancer treatment and research.

Speaking at the event, President of the AKISAN Dallas Metro Chapter, Mr. Richard Eyo, said the donation was in furtherance of the association’s long-standing commitment to healthcare and humanitarian support, particularly for children facing life-threatening illnesses. He noted that the chapter deliberately aligned the gesture with its belief that saving lives should transcend borders.

Eyo, a cybersecurity expert who also serves as Speaker of the AKISAN Council of Chapter Presidents, explained that members of the association consistently mobilise resources annually for humanitarian causes. He said supporting St. Jude was a natural extension of their values, given the hospital’s global reputation for advancing paediatric cancer care.



He stressed that while AKISAN maintains an international outlook, its interventions remain deeply rooted at home. According to him, the renovation of St. Mary’s Hospital in Essien Udim earlier in the year required significant financial commitment and addressed long-standing infrastructural decay that had undermined healthcare delivery in the community.

Beyond hospital interventions, Eyo disclosed that AKISAN continues to invest in educational scholarships, vocational skills sponsorships and welfare support for Akwa Ibom indigenes, both within Nigeria and in the diaspora, assuring that the association would sustain such initiatives as resources allow.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is globally recognised as one of the foremost paediatric research institutions, dedicated to the treatment and eradication of childhood cancer and other catastrophic diseases through advanced research and care, provided at no cost to affected families.



Officials of the hospital commended the Akwa Ibom indigenes for their generosity, describing them as worthy ambassadors of their state and country. They assured that the donation would be deployed strictly for cancer and leukaemia treatment, while encouraging other organisations and individuals to emulate AKISAN’s example.
Written by Henshaw NYONG