COVID-19 Doesn’t Stop Childhood Cancer
The world may feel like it’s slowed down in the past two months, but childhood cancer has not. Every school day, 46 children are still diagnosed with cancer. Families are living in fear of their immunosuppressed child catching COVID-19, which could lead to delaying, or completely stopping, chemotherapy treatments. The pandemic has resulted in economic and physical hardship for these families, as well as the cancellation of many life-saving fundraising events.
In response to the growing need for financial assistance due to the pandemic, The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation launched the “ COVID-19 Doesn’t Stop Childhood Cancer: The B+ Foundation’s Response to Families of Kids with Cancer Impacted by COVID-19” campaign on April 30, 2020. Every dollar donated directly assisted the families of kids with cancer impacted by COVID-19. In less than a week, we were able to raise $5,633 towards our UDance 2021 fundraising total and help families be able to focus on the health and well-being of their child. Your efforts directly helped B+ Heroes like Stephanny and their families during this uncertain time:
“Stephanny was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in March 2019 and continues on active chemotherapy coming 1-3 times a month for treatment and close follow-up. She resides with her mother, aunt, uncle, and two cousins. Her father has not been active in her life.
Tragically, Stephanny’s mother passed away from the coronavirus a few weeks ago. Shortly after that, Stephanny was admitted to the hospital and also tested positive for coronavirus. She had a very complicated hospitalization but thankfully her condition improved and she was just discharged.
Her aunt and uncle have assumed care for Stephanny. That also means they are now responsible for her mother’s portion of the rent. The aunt and uncle are currently on unpaid leave from their work in a restaurant due to their state’s Stay at Home Order.
Stephanny’s aunt and uncle, when working, earned $30,000 a year. Thanks to you, Stephanny and her family will be able to stay in their apartment for another month. Thank you so much for your support.”
Our UDance Community was heartbroken when we could not celebrate UDance 2020 together on campus with our B+ Heroes. However, it continues to prove that UDance is a year-long fundraising effort. All of our work for the past year leading up to UDance 2020 shows how impactful our community can be. We have the chance to change the lives of families who need it most, so thank you for continuing to make a difference, FTK.