In June of 2017, we heard the words that no parent ever wants to hear: your child has cancer.
Oliver was our happy, chubby little 15 month old. He was our 4th child, and had made our family complete. His siblings doted on him, and we vowed to soak in every second of his baby years. Instead, in the middle of a family road trip, we found ourselves in a literal fight for his life.
Oliver was diagnosed with Stage IV, High Risk Neuroblastoma. It was a nasty diagnosis, with survival rates of less than 50%, and awful long term side effects for those lucky enough to make it through the treatment.
We moved our family 1,000 miles from home to get him the best treatment we could. He endured 9 rounds of chemo, a dozen surgeries (including a massive 27-hour resection in his abdomen), a bone marrow transplant, and more than 150 overnight stays in the hospital. On top of that were countless scans, needle pokes, infection scares, and hours upon hours of clinic days.
Through it all, Oliver amazed everyone around him with his perseverance. He kept getting knocked down, and he kept getting back up. Fighting cancer is an indescribable drain on a family, and we found ourselves counting on Oliver’s laughter to pull us through the roughest times. It was an unfair expectation of any toddler, much less one fighting for his life, but the burden never seemed to bother him. He carried us through it all. Our brave little guy fought valiantly, but it was never a fair fight.
On July 18, 2018, we lost our precious Ollie.
We decided that day that we would do whatever it takes to help other kids avoid the same fate. We are going to try to repay him for his strength, and carry his memory in the way he deserves. We are raising money to find cures, and to give hope to other kids that will face the same fight.
Please support me with a donation to Oliver’s Hero Fund at the St. Baldrick's Foundation. This volunteer-driven charity funds more in childhood cancer research grants than any organization except the U.S. government. Your gift will give hope to infants, children, teens and young adults fighting childhood cancers.
Donations given to The Oliver Wells Fund for Neuroblastoma Research have funded a a St. Baldrick's Scholar Grant for Hunter Jonus, Ph.D., a St. Baldrick’s Fellow Grant for Marc Schwartz M.D., Ph.D. and St. Baldrick's Scholar Extension Grant for Saurabh Agarwal, Ph.D.
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is guided by a Scientific Advisory Committee, comprised of leading experts in the childhood cancer community, to ensure that every dollar makes the greatest impact for kids with cancer.
These people make us smile - they're the doers and money-raisers on behalf of The Oliver Wells Fund for Neuroblastoma Research. They're shaving their heads, hosting events, starting fundraisers and more to make childhood cancer research possible.
Start your own St. Baldrick’s head-shaving event to raise money on behalf of our Hero Fund! You’ll be paired with a staff member who will walk you through every step of the process, and you’ll have fun knowing you’re doing a great thing for kids with cancer.
Register to shave your head and raise money for our Hero Fund at any St. Baldrick’s event happening around the world! Not finding an event near you? Register as a virtual shavee and shave your head anytime, anywhere.
Head-shaving not your thing? You can start a fundraiser to raise money for our Hero Fund with St. Baldrick’s in a way that interests you! Like biking? Bike a marathon. Like baking? Start a cookie baking fundraiser… You get the picture.
St. Baldrick’s Foundation
1333 South Mayflower Avenue, Suite 400
Monrovia, CA 91016 USA
(888) 899‑2253 · sbinfo@stbaldricks.org
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation is a non-profit 501 (c)3 organization, IRS identification number 20-1173824.
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