775-825-0888
3550 Barron Way #9a • Reno, Nevada 89511
On January 15th, 2021, I rang the bell that I believed signified the end of it all. The end of the battle, the struggle, the chaos, and the pain. I believed this bell let everyone know about my victories and my accomplishments throughout this hectic journey. Finally, I believed this bell was a ticket. Not just any ticket, but a ticket that allowed me to escape the hospital that had been my life for ten months. Maybe I was naïve in thinking that this bell was magical and all powerful, but it gave me hope. I would walk past this bell every time I got the treatments that would physically and mentally destroy me, knowing that one day, I would ring it. I imagined myself upon a great hill with this bell in my hands screaming, “VICTORY!” but, when the day finally came, not much changed.
I had already endured five surgeries, twelve blood transfusions, seventeen rounds of chemotherapy, and two months of radiation. I had already “passed” my scans and received the “no evidence of disease” text that my mom had stayed up all night praying for. What people don’t understand about cancer, and especially childhood cancer, is that the battle doesn’t stop after the bell. People hear about the hospital stories while receiving chemo or the “fun times” down at the radiation clinic. Yet, few people take notice to the fight that takes place after chemo and radiation, or as my one of my fellow cancer survivors called it, the life after the bell.
This phrase, “the life after the bell,” signifies more than just trying to get back to normalcy because cancer survivors will never be “normal” again. We will always wonder about relapse or having to return to the hospital. We will battle aftereffects of the toxic drugs that were used to save our lives. The thought always in the back of our minds that our days are now limited. The main drug used in chemotherapy for many different types of cancers, Doxorubicin affects the heart very negatively. Me and my fellow teenage cancer survivors have hearts of 30 to 40-year-olds thanks to this treatment. We fight day after day to remain healthy. There’s an ongoing treatment after the BIG treatment. We keep going in for scans and blood work every three months. We take numerous pills to keep that monster out of our bodies. We spend hundreds of hours doing physical therapy to regain as much movement as we can. For some of us, all these precautions and treatments aren’t enough. Some of us, like my mentor and friend, Katie, find a way to relapse. She is now in her second battle with Ewing’s Sarcoma.
We live life after the bell differently then we lived before. We make the most of it because we all know that life may change in an instant. My friends tell me I have too much energy when really, I have no energy, but I keep going. I want to keep living and keep experiencing life. I am blessed to wake up every day and be able to move freely without cancer holding me back. I go out every day for those who can’t. I speak for all the children that can’t speak for themselves.
I was recently a part of a Capitol Hill Day project with the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation that allowed me to speak to some of our state representatives, to try and raise funds for childhood cancer research. Events like these are very important when it comes to raising awareness for the struggles that innocent kids go through.
Although cancer sucks, it has brought some amazing things into my life. It has made me appreciate the little things and to be more carefree. To be almost stripped away of your life allows you to see the bigger picture. I realized that what matters in life, it isn’t being the best basketball player or getting the best grade in the class. What matters is truly living and making memories with those you love. My generation struggles so much over things that don’t matter like our phones, our grades, or who has more followers on Instagram. My experience has allowed me to live life better than I did before, and for that, I appreciate what I’ve learned from this journey. Now I will continue to keep making memories and living for those who can’t. The best life I could possibly live, will be the life after the bell.
Landen
Press Release –
(Reno, NV) – Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (NNCCF) announced today the Know the Gold Campaign Gift Match Challenge of $500,000. Starting September 1, 2020, during Childhood Cancer Awareness month, all donations will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the William N. Pennington Foundation, up to $500,000, through February 19, 2021. Funds raised will support local children battling cancer and all support stays in northern Nevada.
“The way our community can come together to show support for our organization is inspiring and we are grateful for their commitment and kindness,” said NNCCF Executive Director Shirley Folkins-Roberts. “With the gift match challenge, we are able to match every dollar donated, which will support our smallest, most vulnerable community members during this time.”
To support the Know the Gold Campaign during Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, please consider:
To donate or find out more information visit nvchildrenscancer.org/knowthegold, call (775)825-0888 or contact Alicia@nvchildrenscancer.org.
NNCCF assists an average of 120 local families each year and has provided more than $5.3 million in financial and emotional assistance in the last 20 years. The NNCCF is funded through local grass-roots efforts and does not receive federal or state funding. The Know the Gold Campaign helps raise funds and awareness for childhood cancer, and the national symbol of childhood cancer which is the gold ribbon. One out of 285 children will be diagnosed with cancer in the United States before the age of 20, and more children are lost to cancer in the U.S. than any other childhood diseases combined.
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The Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation is the only non-profit in the region solely dedicated to helping local children and their families affected by childhood cancer. NNCCF’s programs and services include the Family Assistance Fund, Inspire survivorship program, Hope for the Holidays program and emotional support through end-of-treatment celebrations and family activities. For more information, call (775) 825-0888, visit www.nvchildrenscancer.org or follow on social media @NVKidsCancer.
Thanks to your support in 2019
As our community and world face one of the most deadly health crises in a century, we at the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (NNCCF) would like to thank you for helping us care for our youngest cancer warriors. It is with incredible gratitude for our northern Nevada community that we say how inspiring it has been to watch and be a recipient of the generosity of our community in 2019. Thank you to our donors, supporters, community partners and friends who contributed in 2019 to our mission.
If you would like to request a printed copy of the annual report, please email Lindsey@nvchildrenscancer.org.
[button text=”View PDF” link=”https://www.nvchildrenscancer.org/wp-content/uploads/NNCCF-2019-Annual-Report.pdf”]
If you are planning on shopping online through Amazon, choose AmazonSmile instead. You can shop for products you love while supporting NNCCF and the children we serve. Launched by Amazon.com in 2013, AmazonSmile offers over one million different nonprofits and organizations for buyers to donate to at no extra cost. This program continues to provide the same products and low prices as Amazon.com while donating 0.5% of the proceeds to a charity. To date, more than $183,120,221 has been donated to a variety of organizations thanks to the partnership with AmazonSmile.
The Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (NNCCF) joined the available list of charities a few years ago and to-date has received $3,430.18 from AmazonSmile. Sign up for AmazonSmile today and join the many shoppers supporting northern Nevada children battling cancer. It is a simple way to continue to shop for products you love while a portion of the money is donated to NNCCF.
Don’t forget to turn on AmazonSmile on the Mobile App!
If you already have an account and have downloaded the mobile app make sure you enable AmazonSmile. You must manually turn this feature on.
Open the app and find ’Settings’ in the main menu (☰). Tap on ‘AmazonSmile’ and follow the on-screen instructions to turn on AmazonSmile on your phone.
Follow these steps below:
Every day, millions of shoppers purchase items through Amazon and this program is a simple way to give back to the community. Have you checked out NNCCF’s Toy Cabinet Amazon Wish List? It’s another fun way to support a local child battling cancer by purchasing a toy or item to brighten their day.
[button text=”Shop AmazonSmile” link=”https://smile.amazon.com/”]
Shopping with the Smith’s Rewards Card allows you to buy groceries and everyday necessities while donating a portion of the proceeds to the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (NNCCF). Launched by Smith’s Food and Drug store in July of 2017, the company replaced all previous donation reward programs with Smith’s Inspiring Donations.
This program donates 0.5% of all eligible spending to NNCCF at no extra cost and does not affect the fuel points or coupon discounts already linked to your Smith’s account. Kroger, the parent company of Smith’s, has contributed more than $220 million annually in food, funds, and other products to support communities and nonprofit organizations. Kroger is dedicated to “community engagement, positive social impact, and charitable giving at the national and local levels.”
With Smith’s Inspiring Donations program, you can easily earn rewards on most items located in stores every time you shop. It is important to remember to swipe the Rewards Card or use the phone number linked to your account when checking out.
An account is mandatory to participate in Smith’s Inspiring Donations program. Link your Shopper’s Card to your active account to ensure the transactions are applied and donated to NNCCF.
Type in Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation or enter the code TH865.
Sign up for Smith’s Inspiring Donations Program and support childhood cancer in the northern Nevada region.
Both are survivors of childhood cancer. Both are recipients of Help, Hope, and Courage from the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation (NNCCF).
Jonathon survived childhood leukemia; Evelyn has neuroblastoma. Just after her first birthday, Evelyn started to display signs of regression in milestones. Children her age would normally be sitting up, playing, crawling, and moving around on their own. After visits to her pediatrician and local hospitals, an MRI eventually revealed a 3.5-inch tumor inside Evelyn’s spinal column in her lower back.
“It’s kind of strange. Having gone through what I did, I was almost expecting something like this to happen to my child. Even before she was born, I considered the possibility of something like this occurring. When things started going wrong, cancer was the first thing my mind went to,” said Jonathon.
The NNCCF team was there to provide financial and emotional support to help Jonathon and his young family navigate the uncertainty of Evelyn’s cancer journey, just as they had for Jonathon’s mother when he was diagnosed.
Evelyn is now a happy little two-year-old girl, running, jumping, and riding bikes with her older brother. She’s also a big sister now and shares her gentleness and bright personality with her baby sister.
“Because we had such a wonderful family and NNCCF behind us, we didn’t have to worry about anything but Evelyn and making her healthy. I believe that really had a major impact on her quick recovery as we were able to stay fully focused on healing as a family.”
[button text=”View the full Annual Report here” link=”https://www.nvchildrenscancer.org/wp-content/uploads/NNCCF_2021-Annual-Report-for-web-1.pdf”]
After two weeks of plastic tarps blocking doorways, hammering sounds, the smell of saw dust and fresh paint, the renovations in our office are complete. NNCCF’s 3,000sqft building is now equipped with four additional office spaces with sliding barn doors, a volunteer workspace, updated electrical wiring and server cabinet. Due to the expansion of our programs, we had a significant need for additional offices to accommodate the growing staff. In the last year, NNCCF hired four members to the team to assist with programs and services, administrative work and fundraising.
The total cost of the renovations would have exceeded $20,000, however due to support and in-kind donations from community members and businesses, NNCCF completed construction under a $2,000 budget. We are grateful for these talented individuals that donated their time and resources to us. Our office would not be able to house our expanding team without their help. The list of supporters and companies that made NNCCF’s aspirations possible far exceeds the space available in this article. From keeping the floors and air ducts sanitary to updating the light fixtures and toilets, stocking our toy cabinet to keeping our fire extinguishers up to date, our community stepped in to keep our foundation in full swing while affording us no overhead costs.
Special thank you’s are due to the companies that made the recent construction possible:
Action Electric – Thank you for updating our electrical wiring. Through the years we created unique ways of making our office spaces work, and now we are set up for success.
Pacific Communications – Thank you for making our company available for growth in the world of electronics as our server now has the capacity for adding more computers.
Victory Woodworks – Thank you for the build-out of new offices. You’ve transformed the landscape in our back room into something amazing and the barn doors are truly stunning.
The Keaton Raphael Memorial, formed in Roseville in 1998, branched out to northern Nevada in 2004 and eventually merged with the local Angel Kiss Foundation in 2009 forming the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation. NNCCF experienced the ebb and flow of growth since its formation, and came a long way from starting in a home office shared by two people. As expansion started, Panattoni Development provided office space at no cost to NNCCF, then Nevada State Bank donated a 1,000sqft foreclosure in 2010. The foundation continued to grow and in 2013 the William N. Pennington Foundation awarded NNCCF a capital grant which provided the support necessary to purchase our current facility.
Not only is the NNCCF team fortunate to have an accommodating office space, but our patients and families benefit as well. The office puts the stigma of nonprofits having old cubicles and flickering fluorescent lights to rest. When walking into the front doors, the office is bright, clean and as equally inviting as the staff. The many offices provide our families privacy, as well as a place to unload, relax and play. The giant toy closet in the back is a beacon of light for every child that walks through our doors.
80 cents of every donated dollar supports programs and services. The community partners that help renovate our facility, influence this ratio and provide us the opportunity to expand for the growing need of support. As NNCCF matures and incorporates more programs to assist local children in the fight against cancer, we will again be grateful for community partners to step forward and donate their craft.
By: Lindsey Gross
This September, help spread the word about childhood cancer and how our foundation helps local kids fight off cancer! Rally friends, family and community members to raise awareness and donate to support a local child. The national symbol of childhood cancer is the gold ribbon and NNCCF is giving away free gold ribbon pins to anyone who wants to wear and support during the month of September.
There are many people in our community who are unaware about childhood cancer and how often it affects children right here in northern Nevada. Our foundation receives an average of 40 new kids each year, and the average length of treatment is three years. That means at any given point in the year we are assisting roughly 120 families who have a child in active treatment. These families are your neighbors; shop at the same grocery stores and eat at the same restaurants. They could be the car next to you in morning traffic, or in front of you ordering a tall coffee. You wouldn’t know they have a child fighting cancer, but our nonprofit can equip you with the tools to help them through their battle.
Speak – Tell your family, friends, coworkers and community members that September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and let them know how many children are affected in our community.
Organize – Host a fundraiser during September and get creative! Find out more ways to host a fundraiser.
Share – Wear a gold ribbon pin, share using social media and use the hashtag #KnowTheGold. This helps broaden our reach to other potential advocates in northern Nevada. Like our Facebook page, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram.
Without support from the community, our foundation would not be able to help local children battling cancer with financial and emotional help. The average out-of-pocket cost for a family in the first year of treatment is $10,000. Families also face many unforeseen expenses such as medical bills not covered by insurance, travel expenses, and equipping the home for an immunocompromised child. We are grateful for our supporters and companies that help our foundation make supporting these families possible.
Children should not only survive, but thrive. Help us raise awareness and funds this September. Let’s support local children battling cancer to grow up cancer free! If you would like more information on how to participate and support the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation and our families please contact us, we would love to hear from you!
By Natalie Van Hoozer
It’s holiday time! But what does that mean at NNCCF?
For starters, we cannot thank everyone enough for the gifts donated to us for the holidays. But did you know that we now have another way you can show love to our families?
View our holiday giving fundraiser here and when you donate $25 or more, you can send a dedicated certificate to the person of your choice. The certificate is just a small way to acknowledge that your generous contribution helps to brighten the lives of the families receiving support from NNCCF this holiday season. It’s a great gift for those hard to shop for!
By donating this way, you help us here at NNCCF to continue our mission. In 2015 alone we have helped over 100 families of children with cancer, emotionally and financially.
What Else Can I Do?
If you are looking to help us this season in another way, we have some ideas for you! Although we aren’t set up to have a large quantity of on-site volunteers in our office, we always need help fundraising and increasing our visibility in the Northern Nevada community.
To do this, you could:
By Natalie Van Hoozer
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, so all of us at NNCCF are gearing up for an action-packed, fun month of advocacy. Here are some of our upcoming events and projects:
“Childhood Cancer Awareness Month”:
The month of September is a nationally recognized time for special attention to be focused on children who have fought cancer, children who are currently fighting cancer, and those children’s’ families. It is also a time to rally support for new research initiatives, new donations, and new projects to support the childhood cancer cause. September is also called “Gold Ribbon Month” because the gold ribbon is the nationally recognized symbol of childhood cancer.
The “Know the Gold” Campaign:
This awareness and fundraising campaign will last from September 1, 2015, to January 31, 2016. You will see NNCCF displaying and distributing gold ribbons and different gold-ribbon related items to spread information about childhood cancer and promote the gold ribbon as a symbol of childhood cancer. September 1 initiates the campaign, and it ends on January 31 with a pledge drive!
NNCCF’s “Tournament of Hope”:
Our golf tournament called the “Tournament of Hope” will be happening on September 21, 2015 at Montreux Golf and Country Club. This is one of our largest events of the year. If you are interested in participating in the tournament, view sponsorship opportunities here.
The tournament also features a reception afterwards, where guests are able to hear inspiring stories from NNCCF families and other community members.
Our Coffee Club, “Coffee with a Heart”:
An established program here at NNCCF, our “Coffee with a Heart” program works with Blind Dog Coffee, a local coffee company. The owner of Blind Dog Coffee, Mark Berry, is a childhood cancer survivor himself. He was diagnosed with cancer at age two that left him almost completely blind. Mark lost one eye and part of his other eye due to his cancer treatment as a child, but his personal challenges have not stopped him from giving back to others. He works through his company Blind Dog Coffee Roasters to help children in the fight against cancer and their families.
This September we hope to grow this amazing program! If you become part of our NNCCF Coffee Club, you will get two fresh 1-pound bags of coffee per month from Blind Dog Coffee Roasters while simultaneously giving to a local family in need. Please help us remind people about this wonderful program! View details here.
If you would like to volunteer/participate in these September events, or have any questions about Childhood Cancer Awareness Month or our upcoming events and programs, please contact us, we would love to hear from you!
Use the hashtag #KnowtheGold on social media when posting about Childhood Cancer Awareness month so we can stay updated!
