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HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., Feb. 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Kmart announced its Shop Your Way^® members and customers donated $17.5 million to the ^®Thanks and Giving^®Ìýcampaign during the 2014 holiday season. To celebrate the more than $76.7 million Kmart has raised since 2006, St. Jude named one of its campus buildings in Kmart's honor - the "Kmart St. Jude Life Center," where St. Jude helps patients stay healthy as they continue their journey as a survivor after active treatment ends.

"The naming of the Kmart St. Jude Life Center is a tribute to every member and associate who has ever donated at Kmart," said Edward S. Lampert, Sears Holdings Chairman and CEO. "We're proud to have the building stand among the many facilities on the St. Jude campus dedicated to finding cures for cancer and other life-threatening diseases and discovering breakthroughs that help children in every community Kmart serves."

During the 2014 holiday season, Kmart drove one of the largest single donations ever from a retailer. The fundraising campaign included:

• Donations while checking out at Kmart stores nationwide
• More than $140,000 in donations from purchases of Kmart-exclusive collectible St. Jude bear ornaments
• A $25,000 donation from a week-long holiday toy promotion in which Kmart pledged $1 for every Fab 15 toy purchased to St. Jude
• Inviting St. Jude National Outreach Director Marlo Thomas and St. Jude patient Mary to Kmart for . The event culminated with a donation of $10,000 worth of toys from Kmart to replenish the playrooms at St. Jude

To help generate awareness and encourage giving, Kmart also shared inspirational patient stories, , made possible by the generosity of those who donate every year.

"Witnessing the outpouring of support from our Shop Your Way members, customers and Kmart associates contributing to the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign is truly inspiring," said Alasdair James, president and chief member officer, Kmart. "We're reminded of the power and impact that our Kmart shopping community represents when they rally behind a cause that does so much good for children in need."

Kmart's total helps St. Jude provide cutting-edge treatment and pursue visionary research. These funds are critical given that no family ever pays St. Jude for anything.

"Kmart is an outstanding St. Jude partner and we are so thankful for the incredible generosity shown by Kmart's customers and employees," said Marlo Thomas. "Their support allows us to keep my father's founding promise that no family ever pays St. Jude for anything -- not for treatment, travel, housing or food. That's because we believe all a family should worry about is helping their child live." Ms. Thomas is the National Outreach Director for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

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About KmartÌý
Kmart, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:ÌýSHLD), is a mass merchandising company and part of Shop Your Way, a social shopping experience where members have the ability to earn points and receive benefits across a wide variety of physical and digital formats throughÌý. Kmart offers customers quality products through a portfolio of exclusive brands that includeÌýSofiaÌýbyÌýSofia Vergara,ÌýJaclyn Smith,ÌýJoe Boxer, Route 66 and Smart Sense. For more information visit the company's website atÌýÌý| Sears Holdings Corporation website atÌýÌý| Facebook:Ìý.

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital^{®ÌýÌýÌýÌý}

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and cures childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. St. Jude has the world's best survival rates for the most aggressive childhood cancers, and treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to 80 percent since we opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is working to drive the overall survival rate for childhood cancer to 90 percent in the next decade. St. Jude freely shares the breakthroughs we make, 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 or following St. Jude on and .

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SOURCE Kmart