Keith Urban Joins St. Jude Children's Research Hospital as Artist Ambassador

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, in partnership with four-time Grammy Award winner Keith Urban and Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), has announced Connected Caring, a program which creates private, one to one experiences for children battling cancer and other life-threatening diseases via video connections enabled by Cisco technology.

St. Jude patients, and their families, will be connecting with Urban, the founding Artist Ambassador of the Connected Caring program, who will 'meet' and spend time with each other sharing personal stories and musical moments. Cisco's video collaboration technologies, including TelePresence and Jabber, are designed to lift spirits and to provide comfort and hope to as many St. Jude patients as possible.

"At Cisco, we believe our true value is not in what we make, but what we make possible. With Connected Caring, we set out to create a program that would utilize Cisco Telepresence technology to connect passionate people, like Keith, with the children of St. Jude," said Chuck Robbins, CEO, Cisco. "This program creates meaningful connections that have an extraordinary impact for children battling serious illness."

"I've had a long relationship with St. Jude and the incredible team there," said Urban. "Now with this new partnership with Cisco and their Connected Caring Program, we're going to take it to another level. It's quite extraordinary. No matter where I am in the world it's like I'm in the room with the kids and their families in Memphis. I'm so grateful for this opportunity to do what I can to help everyone feel connected."

"Keith Urban has been a long-time supporter of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, so it was a natural fit for us to partner with him and Cisco on the Connected Caring platform," said Richard Shadyac Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of ALSAC/St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. "Thanks to the Cisco Telepresence technology, Keith will be able to connect directly with our patient families to sing them happy birthday, share an encouraging word, and help take their mind off of their illness for a little while. We are grateful to Cisco and Keith for this amazing opportunity to provide powerful human connections to children who are battling cancer and other life-threatening diseases."

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Unlike any other hospital, the majority of funding for St. Jude comes from individual contributions. Thanks to generous donors, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.

Learn more about the Connected Caring Program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRUUotaBghs

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. We won't stop until no child dies from cancer. St. Jude freely shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. Join the St. Jude mission by visiting stjude.org, liking St. Jude on Facebook (facebook.com/stjude) and following us on Twitter (@stjude).

About Keith Urban
This year (2015) has brought new music from Keith Urban. "John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16," his 19th #1 song, is the first song from what will be his eighth studio album entitled Ripcord. His latest, "Break On Me" debuted this past October and was the #1 most added single at country radio.

In 2001, the Country Music Association honored Urban with its Horizon Award. He was the first Horizon Award winner to go on to win the CMA's Male Vocalist of the Year, a title he's captured three times, and the coveted Entertainer of the Year.

The 2015 CMA Awards brought Urban his fourth win for Vocal Event of the Year ("Raise 'Em Up featuring Eric Church). It marked the first time in history that any artist has received the award in three consecutive years. Urban also is and will be, the first and only Country artist to have served as an American Idol judge. He's won eleven Academy of Country Music Awards, has had five consecutive platinum or multi-platinum albums and is a member of the Grand Ole Opry. This November (2015) will see the grand opening of KEITH URBAN SO FAR...a career spanning Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum exhibition.

Urban has long supported numerous charities. His "All For The Hall" benefit concerts for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum© have raised over $2.6 million. He is the first Ambassador of the CMA Foundation, is an advisory board member at the St. Jude's Children's Hospital and is a longtime supporter of The Mr. Holland's Opus Fund and The Grammy Foundation.

About Cisco
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