Russell and Kailey Dickerson Honored With Angels Among Us Award at Country Cares Event

Event Overview

Event: 36th Annual Country Cares for St. Jude Kids
Honorees: Russell Dickerson and Kailey Dickerson
Award: Randy Owen Angels Among Us Award
Presenter: Randy Owen (ALABAMA)

Country music singer Russell Dickerson and his wife, Kailey Dickerson, have been recognized for their charitable efforts after receiving the Randy Owen Angels Among Us Award during the 36th annual Country Cares for St. Jude Kids event. The honor is given to a country music artist demonstrating exceptional service and dedication to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

The award was presented directly by ALABAMA's Randy Owen, who launched the Country Cares initiative back in 1989. Since its inception, the country music community has helped raise hundreds of millions of dollars to ensure that families supported by St. Jude never receive a bill for treatment, housing, travel, or food.

Reflecting on the Recognition

Speaking prior to the dinner ceremony, the couple shared the personal meaning behind accepting the honor together as parents.

“Such a huge honor to receive this, especially together. And as parents now, it means a whole different thing to have children of our own. And when you meet these families and see where they’re at and just an unimaginable situation and knowing how incredible St. Jude is to come through for these families year after year, decade after decade, it’s just the highest honor that we could do to give back and to promote St. Jude at every turn of our influence,” Russell stated.

“You can’t go to St. Jude and leave the same as you came. It is such an honor to partner with them and never in a million years did we think this was part of the process. It was such a surprise and such an honor and it’s honestly kind of hard to receive,” Kailey added.

During the official presentation later in the evening, the couple took the stage to deliver a speech lasting over seven minutes. They recalled their very first visit to St. Jude in 2017 while Russell was touring with Thomas Rhett. Kailey expressed gratitude to Randy Owen for leading the initiative and offered prayers for the hospital's patient families and ongoing research efforts.

Addressing the audience, the “Worth Your Wild” singer reflected on why he believed they were chosen for the accolade, noting his family's deep roots in supporting the cause.

“I’m not the biggest superstar in country music by any means, nor am I the biggest donor to St. Jude by any means either. We just paid off our student loans a few years ago,” he joked, before adding that their willingness to say “yes” whenever St. Jude calls has been their constant standard.

Russell extended that philosophy into a call to action for the room of media members, influencers, and country radio programmers, challenging them to always respond with a resounding “yes” when asked to support St. Jude.