By Jaleel Moody
Last week, sophomores Sydney Birkhahn and Amanda Gilbert participated in the second week of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS), Students of the Year, fundraising campaign. The two have been fundraising to help support blood cancer research and the mission of LLS. The goal is to find a cure and ensure access to treatments for blood cancer patients.
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is an organization dedicated to finding a cure for blood cancer. It started in 1949 in the New York area founded by the De Villiers family after their youngest son passed away due to leukemia. It quickly developed into the largest non-profit group with over 1.2 billion dollars dedicated to finding a cure.
Students of the Year is a philanthropic leadership development program for exemplary high school students. During the campaign, participants foster professional skills such as entrepreneurship, marketing, and project management in order to raise funds. It’s a seven-week competition where students across the U.S. compete to raise the most money. The winner is then named ‘Student of the Year.’ Our sophomores began their campaigning season on January 23 and will continue to fundraise until March 11.
“Amanda and I have several different connections with LLS and other types of cancer that motivated us to participate in this campaign. We have both lost loved ones to cancer who have taught us to fight for what is right and to make a positive change in the world. In addition, two students in our community have suffered from Leukemia. Both have shown such courage in fighting the disease, living life to its fullest and adding so much joy to everyone around them. We are so proud to be fundraising in their honor,” said Birkhan.
Sydney and Amanda have held a fundraising event called, “Chuck a Puck.” They offered pucks with numbers on them and then held a raffle. This also plan on selling candy grams for Valentines Day.
They are reaching out to family, friends and the entire community to gain any support and attention possible. The end goal is to create awareness and raise money that will be put towards finding a cure.
Please find time to visit their fundraising page to donate and share this information with your friends on social media and throughout the community. They would love to hear any new ideas for how they could raise money. You can find the link here: https://events.lls.org/ctwhv/CTWHVSOY20/tbigchange
