LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- One of WDRB's very own was given a special honor Tuesday morning from Home of the Innocents.
Jude Redfield was named Home of the Innocents 2024 Hero for the Home after his dedication and compassion to the record year of Jude's Jingle Tree.
Jude found the biggest and prettiest tree from Robert's Family Farm and filled it with ornaments from viewers that poured into the newsroom, each of them with a special story.
In December, WDRB Mornings presented a check to Home of the Innocents for $105,000, a record amount.
IMAGES | Jude's Jingle Tree 2023 presents big check to to the Home of the Innocents
2023 was a record-breaking year thanks to the generosity of WDRB viewers.Â
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude Redfield in his holiday finest! Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude Redfield had to wear his elf slippers. Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
Jude's Jingle Tree and WDRB Mornings presented the Home of the Innocents with a record total of $105,000 raised from donations from our viewers. (WDRB Image) Dec. 22, 2023
In typical Jude Redfield fashion, he emphasized how the award is not just for him but everyone involved in making Jude's Jingle Tree a ringing success every year.
He thanked Sterling, Candyce and the rest of the WDRB Mornings crew for jumping in and opening all of the ornaments and donations that come in, the engineers who hang the tree outside and make sure it's sturdy, the production crew for braving the cold November and December temperatures to set up cameras outside for his live shots, and each and every person who sends in an ornament or a donation.
"I feel like that plaque shouldn't have just my name on it, but everybody's," he said.
WDRB's Sterling Riggs emceed the event and said that Jude's mission has a deeper meaning to our community than just helping people.
"He comes in early every morning, 3:00 or 3:30, to gather all of the ornaments, open them and read each card and note," Riggs said. "He truly cares and wants to hear the stories."
Jude was also surprised by his daughter, Marin, and wife, Lauren, who got to say a few words about Jude and the type of person he is.
"Everything he does begins with love," Lauren said. "Every project he takes on is rooted in love, driven by love and executed with love."
It's quite a task to surprise Jude, but WDRB and the Home of the Innocents crew succeeded.
Congratulations Jude! We are very proud of you.
About the Home of the Innocents:Â
Established in 1880, Home of the Innocents enriches the lives of children and families with hope, health, and happiness. Programs include residential and community-based behavioral health services, therapeutic foster care and adoption services, supportive services for homeless young adults, and long-term care for medically complex or terminally ill children.Â
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