The story of Amaya and Ariana
Amaya is the four-year-old big sister to Ariana. In May, little Ariana was diagnosed with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma (T-LBL). She is two years old. Ariana started an intense chemotherapy full of drug cocktails and side effects. Mom, Kelsey, is juggling raising these two beautiful girls while studying nursing full time. Helping mom is her own mother. Because Kelsey registered Ariana with Connor's Heroes, Mom, Grandma and the girls are receiving support from us. Last week, Erin gave mom a $50 gift card for Kroger. Mom and the girls joined us for a night at The Diamond to meet Nutzy and watch a baseball game. Ariana started her long journey with childhood cancer, but thanks to you, Ariana and Amaya are not alone.
Connor's Heroes is rallying with the world during September's Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. We'll share stories, encouragement, and updates on what we've accomplished thanks to you! You allow us to fulfill our mission:
To build a community of heroes who provide hope, guidance, and support to children with cancer and their families.
$5,300 Raised
Avid runner and CHF board member, Ashley, organized another successful Brandermill 7.4K on July 4. Between race registration, sponsorships and a sweet cupcake bake sale, the event raised $5,300. Just as important, this event raised awareness of childhood cancer in our community. Several of our hero families live in the Brandermill neighborhood. They appreciated the support of their neighbors in their fight against childhood cancer.
I Deliver Care
We are excited to be partnering with McKesson on their campaign "McKesson Delivers." The campaign kicked off with this heartfelt video that featured our hero Jack. The video shows how McKesson employees help patients with each bandage, syringe and vial of vaccine they provide. If you are a healthcare provider, they are asking you to share how YOU DELIVER CARE! Record a 1-3 minute video or write a post celebrating the special care you deliver to patients every day. You could win a $1000 donation made in your organization's name to Connor's Heroes (or two other charities). McKesson will chose a winner every month.
So, what could you talk about? How about:
- A special patient like Jack who fought against the odds;
- The passion you have for helping people stay healthy;
- An overview of the things you do every day to make sure your patients know how much you care;
- Because you are proud of the work you do as a healthcare provider.
You should focus the story on you and your facility's care. There is no need for you to make any reference to McKesson in your story or video. (Remember to leave out any confidential patient information.) It doesn't need to be long or formal. Just grab your smartphone and record a brief, heartfelt message. Use the hashtag #idelivercarefor
Submit your story and/video on McKesson's website.
New Family Festival in 2017
After much discussion with our co-sponsors, Westchester Commons and Richmond Family Magazine, we are not going to have the event formerly known as DiggityFest this September. Don't worry though. We hope to bring it back in 2017 with a new name and a new kind of fun. This doesn't mean that Connor's Heroes won't have family-friendly events. Quite the contrary. Check out our events page. From The Heroes Run motorcycle rally, concerts throughout the area or dining at area restaurants, our community of supporters put the FUN in fundraising!
Night at the Diamond
It's become a traditional summer event for our Hero families: Going to a Flying Squirrels baseball game. Connor's Heroes worked with our friends at the Diamond to arrange for a fun-filled night. All the families had to do was show up. The kids met Nutzy the Flying Squirrel, ran on the field and enjoyed a hot dog or two. Just as special, the families spent time together on a beautiful summer night, outside of the hospital. Your gifts support our programs so we can go all out for our childhood cancer heroes. Thank you to Kristin Seward for capturing this special night.
Ashland Barracudas Swim For Cancer
Once again the Ashland Barracudas swam for childhood cancer! They dropped off $5,000 in donations that we will include as part of our $10,000 donation to the Jamie Hess Pediatric Bone Marrow Transplant Fund at the VCU Massey Cancer Center. Jamie’s parents, Fred and Barbara, have been a part of our organization since our early years. They encouraged us to help the pediatric cancer patients who are often feeling isolated on the bone marrow transplant unit. Barbara and Fred both volunteered at this year's highly successful Heroes Art Ball. The Jamie Hess Fund and Connor’s Heroes Pediatric Cancer Research Fund are the only ones in Richmond dedicated to supporting ground-breaking childhood cancer research. Thank you to Ashland for carrying on Jamie's legacy.
Below is the story of Jamie Hess and how his illness inspired the team to swim in honor of him and our childhood cancer heroes!
Creating Smiles
These sweet girls spent an afternoon in our office making cards. They filled each one with drawings of flowers and sunshine, and wrote inspiration messages like "we're thinking of you" and "you're not alone." They also donated iTunes and GooglePlay gift cards to go with them! Parents tell us that these cards are very special to their child because they were made by other kids. Kids helping kids. It's a big part of Connor's Heroes!
CVC and United Way
Are you an employee with the State of Virginia? Does your company give through the United Way?? Connor's Heroes is an authorized charity for both!!! We received confirmation that Connor's Heroes is an affillated with the employee giving program, Commonwealth of Virginia Campaign - CVC. You can now make a regular contribution to Connor's Heroes through your payroll. All you need is this number: 08566. If your business/company encourages giving through the United Way, our United Way number is 7090. Connor's Heroes also benefits from many of Virginia's businesses' employee matching programs. All these employee matches and payroll giving add up very quickly. We couldn't provide direct support to families battling cancer or fund cutting-edge research without the support from our community of heroes! Talk to your Human Resources department to learn how you can maximize your giving to Connor's Heroes.
More Sunday Funday
Children whom you met at our Heroes Art Balls throughout the years, joined us for our latest Sunday Fun Day. Anna, Valentin and Jack had a great time together with our volunteers from our young professional group. It's hard to believe that in 2013, Anna was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Now, look at her. A smiling 10-year-old about to start 5th grade. Valentin stole the hearts of everyone at our 2014 Heroes Art Ball. He was in the middle of his treatment for Leukemia (Pre-B ALL) when he took the stage looking adorable in his tuxedo. This summer, he is traveling with his family and going to camp with his brother, Florian. Jack is almost six months into his three year treatment for T-Cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma. Working by his side are his brother and sister, Landon and Ellie. Thank you for allowing Connor's Heroes to host these craft sessions. As you see, it is a cherished time for our Hero families.
Hero Art’s New Home
Love, love, love seeing our hero's art in its new home. Heather won the painting by our hero Drew, his brother, Bryce, and our hero artist Camilo Perdomo. Camilo had the kids splatter paint on the canvas. He then outlined the face of the chicken. It's partner piece was a beautiful cat. Heather posted on her facebook page:
"Soooo excited for my newest addition to operation renovate and decorate! I bought this one from the Connor's Heroes Foundation Heroes Art Ball and just got it back from being framed. It was painted by the cutest little boy who was battling cancer and an artist helper."