The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is gearing up for its annual Student of the Year campaign. Although this program has been around for many years, this is the inaugural year in our area. This campaign features a number of nominated high school students vying in a seven-week time frame for the title of Student of the Year. Each dollar raised counts as a vote.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society centers itself on supporting families of blood cancer patients as well as researching cures for blood cancers, such as leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma. Leukemia is the number one childhood cancer among children under the age of 20, and every three minutes a person in the United States gets diagnosed with a blood cancer. Because of this important cancer research, survival rates have improved with patients of these diseases, from 14% to 64.5% in the last 50 years. Many pivotal discoveries for other cancers, such as breast and brain cancers, and diseases, such as diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, have been found during LLS-funded research. This research affects us all.
A local Student of the Year nominee, LaVille’s Jorryn Zellers, wants to see the survival rate improve to 100%. This freshman spends her time as a varsity cheerleader, a drama club member, a color guard for the band, a founding member of her school’s GSA, and a 10-year contributor to Girl Scouts. In addition to her many community service projects, she and her team, Team Finding Cures, are raising funds to benefit cancer patients everywhere. Jorryn asserts, “This campaign is teaching me volunteerism, community outreach and leadership, not to mention it’s for a noteworthy cause that touches a lot of people.”
Through this program, Jorryn discovered one of her teachers is a survivor of childhood leukemia. “I want to be a teacher when I’m older, and I can’t imagine any child having to suffer with a horrible disease,” Jorryn ruminates. Because of this journey, Jorryn has also been introduced to Caleb, a nine-year-old leukemia survivor. “It’s heartbreaking to hear everything he has had to go through – all the chemo and biopsies, spinal taps and blood transfusions. And for 3 and a half years! Luckily now he is cancer-free! That is what donations for cancer research does. Now Caleb can lead a normal, happy life.”
Along with coordinating fundraising events, she is seeking donations from businesses and residents in the area. She has established an inspiring goal of raising $55,000 for her contribution to blood cancer research.
Jorryn adds, “Every dollar counts toward finding a cure for cancer. No amount is too big or too small. Everyone should donate today because ‘Fighting Cancer is in Our Blood.’” Her fundraising page can be found at https://events.lls.org/in/
Pictured are Jorryn and members of her campaign team, Team Finding Cures, at the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Student of the Year Kick-off Celebration held at Four Winds Field on January 30. Back row from left: Sara Beitler-Beserra, Jorryn Zellers, Caleb Hoppe (leukemia survivor), and Allie Bringham. Front row from left: Mackenzie Mishler and Gabby Roper.
