Update On Research
I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Corey speak to our Board and members of the C4 organization this month. He shared the progress he's made in the few months he's been at the helm of the Connor's Heroes Pediatric Cancer Research Fund at VCU Massey Cancer Center. As we approach our 10 year anniversary, we will build our legacy through improvements in pediatric cancer treatments and finding cures. We are so proud to have initiated bringing pediatric cancer research to Richmond back in 2007. Dr. Corey has set some HUGE goals including doubling the size of the hematology/oncology faculty over the next several years and making Richmond a top 20 institution for pediatric cancer treatment and cures! He plans to expand the neuro-oncology and stem cell transplant departments, as well as palliative care, nursing, and social work for pediatric oncology patients. We are also super excited about his Zebra Fish lab!
Curious to learn more? Dr. Corey's team has a website and Dr. Corey tweets!
Courage For Katie
If you are on Facebook, I encourage you to join the group COURAGE FOR KATIE. Katie's mom is doing an amazing job of sharing her daughter's fight against leukemia. If you ever wondered what it is like to have a child with cancer, her posts will show you the ups, downs, challenges and small miracles these families face. She shares how simple acts of kindness from Connor's Heroes are making a difference. (Take a look at her hospital room that was decorated by a Connor's Heroes volunteer.) Many of her pictures include our other Hero kids and their parents. It is an amazing community! I thought this one photo was especially touching. Katie is on her way to yet another appointment as she prepares for her bone marrow transplant. She's holding hands with her dad who's proudly toting her Connor's Heroes Backpack on his back. Katie is one of a hundred families who suddenly find themselves in the world of cancer. Discover what is in the Connor's Heroes Bags and Backpacks and how you can help fill the next one for a Hero!
Photo credit: Katie's mom, Courage For Katie Facebook group
Thank You to Vino Market
Vino Market in Midlothian had an online auction with the proceeds benefitting Connor's Heroes. The auction was for the ONE remaining bottle of the Peter Michael Au Paradis 2012. It was awarded the #1 wine on Wine Spectators coveted Top 100 Wines of the year list. The winning bid was $600 with a significant amount of the bid donated to Connor's Heroes. We love creative FUNdraisers like Vino's. Contact Connor's Heroes if you have an idea for a fundraiser. Email lisa@connorsheroes.org or call (804) 897-1272.
Start of 2016
Connor's Heroes is proud to be a founding member of C4 - a consortium of childhood cancer organizations helping families in Central Virginia. At the January meeting, the social worker from Children's Hospital of Richmond at VCU shared statistics from 2015. We are always so sad to learn the number of children who lost the battle against childhood cancer. While one is one too many, 16 made 2015 an especially difficult year.
As 2016 begins, we are reaching out to new and current Hero families. Our first registration for the year was a beautiful, 4-year-old girl. She has a rare form of cancer called poorly differentiated chordoma of the skull base. She spent nine weeks in treatment in Utah. Her health has taken an unexpected and very difficult turn. The family is back in Richmond taking it one day at a time. Because of our experience helping more than 1,000 families for the past 10 years, Connor's Heroes can reach out to the family in a manner that is compassionate, with understanding and sensitivity. We also are collaborating with other C4 organizations to make sure that she has a wheelchair ramp for her home.
Let's hope 2016 sees a reduction in the number of children facing childhood cancer.
Bringing Holidays To Our Hero Families
The holidays are stressful enough. Adding to the pressure, our Hero kids still have countless appointments, clinic visits, treatments and unexpected trips to the hospital. Moriah was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma when she was less than a month old. This sweet baby has only known a life with cancer. While we drove to and from the malls, her family made more trips to Duke for treatment, often spending several days at a time in North Carolina. Childhood cancer does not take a break for the holidays! We realized it is a good time to call on our community of volunteers. Thanks to a generous gift from an anonymous donor and a grant from the Richmond Christmas Mother Fund, eight Hero families had Secret Santas take care of their holiday wish list.
Our Secret Santas made sure presents were wrapped and delivered right to their doorsteps. Our Hero Santas made deliveries to South Hill and Petersburg and delivered Christmas dinner too! We appreciated the kind email written by the mother of our 17-year-old Hero. She's battling a brain tumor that metastasized to her spine.
This is a program we coordinate, every year, with ASK Childhood Cancer Foundation. We want to thank Johnson Controls, Haley Auto, McGuireWoods LLP, Aaron and Karen for making the holidays special for our Hero families.
Kids Helping Kids 2015
Over the holidays, a Midlothian Girl Scout troop held a bake sale for Connor's Heroes. All the baked goods were priced at just a dollar! Would you believe they raised $500! That's enough to fill five backpacks for the first five children diagnosed with childhood cancer this year. If your scout troop, church group, school service club or family wants to hold a fundraiser for Connor's Heroes, our website is full of simple ideas to get you started.
Guide to Giving
Now's the time to show that you believe every child should not face cancer alone. Childhood cancer is the number one disease killer of children yet it only receives 4% of research funding from the federal government. Connor's Heroes surrounds a family with a community of heroes who help emotionally and financially. Your financial gift makes it possible for Braxton's mom, shown here, to feel there's hope for her baby boy. This is your guide to learn more about the families who need you to support Connor's Heroes with a financial gift made before the year's end.
You can give online at our secure site, www.connorsheroes.org/donate, or mail a check to Connor's Heroes, P.O. Box 2536, Midlothian VA 23113. Thank you!
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Celebrating The Holidays
We are busy as elves here at the office of Connor's Heroes. Every day we reach out to families to make sure they don't feel alone in their journey with a child's cancer. During the holidays it is more important to extend a helping hand. That's where our community of hero volunteers come in!
- Pat, a volunteer and cancer survivor, signed 100 holiday cards that Erin mailed to our hero families.
- A mom dropped off a stack of adorable cards made by the Builder's Club at Midlothian Middle.
- A family delivered beautifully wrapped presents for a hero family. The financial burden and emotional toll of their teen's treatment for leukemia is making the holidays hard. Thanks to the grant from The Richmond Christmas Mother Fund, they will have presents and gift cards for the holiday.
- Families living in the Woods at Sumerford donated gift cards for our Heroes Bags and Backpacks and raised $500 selling holiday baked goods.
These are great reasons to believe in the community of heroes who help the families of Connor’s Heroes. Together, we will make sure no family faces their child's cancer alone, especially during the holidays.
Giving For The Holidays
This holiday, why not ask your family, friends, co-workers or secret santas to donate to Connor's Heroes instead of purchasing gifts? A $10, $25 or $50 tax-deductible donation will help a child who is spending the holidays in treatment here in Richmond. You will make sure no family in Central Virginia will go through their child's cancer alone. Feel free to download the graphics. Include them in a text, email or your holiday cards. Anyone can donate online at our secure site, www.connorsheroes.org/donate, or mail a check to Connor's Heroes, P.O. Box 2536, Midlothian VA 23113. If you have other suggestions, contact me at lisa@connorsheroes.org.
Video of our Heroes
Flipgram is a fun way to show you a collage of photos. Here's one created for our end-of-the-year giving campaign. In one minute, you will see our heroes such as Landon, Katie, Caleb, Pierson and the volunteers who helped throughout the year. As you're with your family,friends and co-workers over the holiday, you can tell them about Connor's Heroes by showing them this video. Whether you donate to support our programs or pediatric cancer research, your gift will impact the lives of families battling childhood cancer. Discover how...
