Sterling K. Brown has been an ally to those affected by cancer.
The cause hits home for the This Is Us star, whose uncle died of cancer in 2004, just six months after being diagnosed. In May 2019, Brown launched the series Survivorship Today from Bristol Myers Squibb to raise awareness of the struggles cancer survivors may face after treatments.
Now, the Emmy-winning actor, 46, has partnered with Mastercard and Stand Up To Cancer for an initiative aimed to help fund groundbreaking cancer research. By using a Mastercard at qualifying restaurants and grocery stores, the global company will make a donation of one cent to SU2C, up to $5 million.
Below, Brown tells PEOPLE why he continues to support those affected by cancer and details what he's learned as an advocate.
PEOPLE: What made you want to participate in this campaign?
STERLING K. BROWN: I was like, “If you would like to support cancer research and developments for treatment for it, I couldn't think of an easier way than just using your card to get food, which is something you have to do.” Whether you go into a restaurant or you go into the grocery store, everybody has to eat. And knowing that a penny out of every dollar that you spend with your Mastercard will be used, will go to Stand Up To Cancer, up to $5 million. I was like, “This seems easy.” People like to do things when they're easy and know that they're doing something of value to make the world a better place. It didn't seem like there was anything difficult about it. I was like, “Ah, this sounds like a campaign I can stand behind.”
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Based on the way cancer has impacted your family, do you experience ebbs and flows when helping others affected by cancer? Or do you have a continued passion for not only helping others, but helping those in your own family and inner circle who may be affected by an illness?
That's a great question. I think about that often. When you're on the airplane, you have to put on your mask first before you help out the others. I think about sort of biblical stories about Christ, taking 40 days and 40 nights to himself so that he can go back out and be the person that he wanted to be for other people or whatnot. Self-care is not selfish. You have to make sure that you are full so that you don't empty yourself to the point where you can't be of service to anyone else.
So the short answer is you have to take care of yourself if you want to take care of anybody else. There's a balance to it, too. You can't be so selfish with your time that it's just about you. But if you are thinking in your mind and like, “Alright, if I'm able to keep myself, my reservoir of energy, of resource, of vitality at a certain level, that's how I'm able to be of optimum good in the world.” Then you see that you taking care of yourself is not a selfish act — it's an act of service. You got to be able to serve yourself first.
How do you find ways to give back, whether it's this campaign or other ways?
For me, it's interesting because I would say [being a] celebrity in and of itself is something that I'm still, sort of, making peace with. But the one thing that you can do with it is amplifying things that you think are of value in the world. I think that's what I get a chance to do. If my name being a part of something means that people will pay particular attention to it, and if I can just say, “By using your card to pick up a meal or to bring some food into your home, that gets donated to research for Stand Up To Cancer,” that's how I use it. Most of the time, it feels like a four-letter word, celebrity or whatnot, and people think that we grandstand and it's about us. But any time you can take that focus on you and turn it on to something else that you think is of worth and worthy, that's how I try to use the platform that I have at my disposal.
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What can someone do if they don't have access to a Mastercard or can't financially give back?
I'll say for me, giving has more to do with time … there are other resources that we have at our disposal. Oftentimes, when people hear “resources”, they think of monetary resources. And though that is one form of resource, your time is probably the most valuable resource that you have at your disposal. If you have someone in your family that is going through this particular disease, sharing your time with them in a way that is authentic and not split is probably one of the greatest things that you can do.
Allowing that individual to be their full selves in your presence is also a great gift. Not forcing people to feel as if they have to be one particular way. We all have ups and downs. And if you allow someone to express the totality of who they are, I think that's probably one of the greatest gifts that you can get.
So if you don't have a Mastercard, and you ain't have a whole bunch of cash at your disposal, giving someone your time is probably one of the greatest resources that you have that can be shared with anyone.
This Is Us airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.