1,168 Days of Chemo
20 spinal taps. 3 bone marrow aspirations. 6 blood transfusions. 74 visits to the hospital. 4 birthday parties on the cancer floor. This is a snapshot of what 10-year-old Addison endured in his treatment for Leukemia. Children like Addison need your help today!
In April of 2010, Addison’s parents became concerned when their lively 5-year-old was too tired to hunt for Easter eggs. Bruises and fevers soon followed. They took him to the emergency room, thinking it was an infection. Instead, they got the shocking news that 98 percent of Addison’s marrow was cancerous. As you can imagine, the news was unbearable.
“My heart was crushed in a way I can’t explain,” Addison’s mom, Sarah, told us. They rushed him to Children’s Hospital Colorado. “The reality didn’t hit until they took Addison to his room. The elevator doors opened and the floor read ‘ONCOLOGY’. My sweet five-year-old child had cancer. Addison touched my face with his pale hands and said, ‘Don’t be scared, Mommy.’”
Their lives suddenly revolved around treatment schedules, long hospital stays, and daunting medical bills. Addison’s parents, Sarah and Kip, knew cancer would be physically traumatic for their son. But what truly overwhelmed them was the emotional and psychological toll the illness took on Addison, his sister Madelene, and themselves.
Medical professionals at Children’s Hospital Colorado immediately referred them
to the Shining Stars Foundation.
Addison’s family was surprised to learn that Shining Stars is not just a one-time camp, but a full year of 50 different recreational, outdoor, and social events. They would not have to pay for these services and could participate for as long as needed. Even better, the whole family could participate.
Ask Sarah to explain Shining Stars in one word? “THERAPY. We feel safe here and we feel secure. Nobody is looking at you like, why is your kid sick? Shining Stars is one of those priceless things. It is everything we need.”
This year, we hope to raise enough money to support 60 brand new children, and their entire families, for the duration of their cancer battle.
You can make this a reality.
CLICK HERE TO DONATE OR SPONSOR A CHILD TODAY.
Reminding Galy What It Feels Like to Live
CLICK HERE TO DONATE OR SPONSOR A CHILD TODAY.
We were so lucky to meet 14-year-old Galy at the 2015 Aspen Winter Games this year. Galy was diagnosed with a brain tumor, grade II astrocytoma-thalmus when she was 13. We spoke with her nurse, Kathy, about the impact that the Aspen Winter Games had on Galy. Read the incredible story below:
"In August, 2014, Galy noticed that she was having trouble writing with her pencil at school. She told her mom and, after several trips to the doctor, finally had an MRI scan. It showed a brain tumor. She and her family were devastated. She had surgery and radiation, but was left with some debilitating seizures during her recovery. She told me that she would cry all the time and ask her mom, “Why me?”
"Galy and I talked a lot about running; she told me that prior to her illness, she liked to run and had completed several half marathons. I like to run too, so we chatted a lot about how it feels so exhilarating to complete a race and how running “clears the brain.” When we were at the airport on our return home, Galy told me that she really misses running, but that when she was skiing, she got the same feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction. It had been so long since she felt that way; she was so grateful to feel that again."
"Galy had a clinic visit the Monday after we returned from Aspen. Her mom looked at me and said (through a Spanish interpreter), “What have you done to my daughter? She isn’t the same person!” She shared how Galy bounces around the house, smiling and singing. Needless to say, Galy’s mom was thrilled with the change in her daughter. Thank you Shining Stars for reminding Galy what it feels like to live again."
It is because of donors and supporters like you that we are able to provide these life-changing programs for Galy and children like her. You can give them hope.
Click here to donate or sponsor a child today.
We're Thankful For... kids who help other kids!
We're changing things up a bit this week for our Friday Thanksgiving Feature and expressing our gratitude for the amazing student volunteer community that we at Shining Stars Foundation like to call, "Kids Helping Kids."
Students from schools in Pitkin County, Grand County, and a number of schools in the Denver Metro area have participated in the program over the last year. Kids offer volunteer support for programs or organize fundraisers to raise money for Shining Stars events and programs.
Just this past week in Aspen, Colorado, our friends at Aspen Middle School put on a two-night Poetry Soiree extravaganza! Students spent countless hours writing or memorizing poems from their favorite authors. All of this hard work culminated at the Soiree, held at Aspen's Limelight Hotel, where students recited their poems in front of family and friends.
Attendees were encouraged to donate to Shining Stars, with the hopes of raising enough funds to sponsor a Shining Star at the 2016 Aspen Winter Games. It was inspiring to see all of the hard work these students had put in on their own time to support other children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses! A big thank you to teachers Hallie Harrison and Bill Boyd for inspiring their students to take this on.
Shining Stars Director of Outreach Cookie Ready visits many of these schools annually to present on the importance of volunteering. Cookie also stresses the importance of acceptance and compassion when a friend or peer is challenged with cancer or another life-threatening illness. When asked why she felt the Kids Helping Kids program was so important, Cookie's answer was two-fold.
"First, for the students, it helps to instill an appreciation of diversity and a love of volunteering at an early age. They learn how good it feels to give back, and how some kids don't have it as easy as others," Cookie explained.
"Second, when students volunteer with the kids that we serve, they develop lasting friendships. The Shining Stars are treated like normal kids or teenagers, a luxury that is not always afforded to them by their peers at home."
We are so incredibly grateful to have such a caring and compassionate student community in the areas we work. These kids give so selflessly of themselves with hopes of making the lives of our Shining Stars kids just that much better.
Thanks to our student volunteers, no one of our Shining Stars has to fight cancer alone, without the support of their peers.
Click here to do your part in making sure that no child or family challeged with cancer or life-threatening illness has to fight their battle alone.
"He Returned From Aspen an Entirely Different Child..."
"...one that is relaxed, happy, less anxious, more confident, and so excited to have made new friends who understand what he is going through."- Lauren, Mother of Jacob.
Meet Jacob. A 12-year-old boy from Castle Rock, Colorado who was diagnosed with a brain tumor, astrocytoma in 2011 when he was only 8 years old.
We feel so lucky to have spent a week in March getting to know Jacob at the 2015 Aspen Winter Games, and again this Summer at the 2015 Aspen Summer Adventure. We spoke to Jacob's mother Lauren to learn more about Jacob's story and to see what kind of impact these Shining Stars programs had on her family.
"Jacob became very ill in December 2011. He had a large fluid-filled cyst in his skull caused by a benign brain tumor (astrocytoma). Jacob endured 6 surgeries to drain the cyst and re-sect the tumor and a 7th surgery to place a shunt. He then had 4 additional surgeries to repair an incision that was not healing properly. Added into the mix was a dental surgery, for a grand total of 12 surgeries in 2012."
Think about watching your child endure one surgical procedure per month, for an entire year.
Try to imagine the emotional and financial stress that would put on any family.
In addition to cancer, Jacob is also faced with Noonan's Syndrome, which complicates his medical treatment protocol even further. Lauren explains how these medical issues have affected not only Jacob, but their entire family.
"Having a child with a serious illness sends you down a path that can only be navigated on a day-to-day basis. You can’t plan for anything more than a week out, and even then, it’s questionable. Living with a serious illness takes a toll on every relationship, especially within the immediate family."
We asked Lauren how Shining Stars Foundation has helped her family cope with these challenges.
"Jacob attended the Aspen Winter Games in March; he also attended the summer program in Aspen this past July. These programs were a turning point for him in regard to managing and overcoming some long-held fears and anxiety. Shining Stars has provided support and events for us that we could not have afforded on our own, or through another program. It has given Jacob incredible opportunities to be challenged, building his confidence, while surrounding him with other kids that he can relate to. This past year has been so incredibly hard for him and for our entire family, so it was a blessing for all of us to have a break from our routine of treatment and care-giving and just have fun!"
Thanks to donors and supporters like you, we make sure that Jacob does not fight his illnesses alone. Shining Stars events and programs will be offered to Jacob and his family from now until they no longer need us. It is your support that makes this possible!
Visit www.ShiningStarsFoundation.org and give what you can to make sure no child or family has to fight alone. Thanks, and have a great weekend!
Meet Alexander and Family
Just a few days before the Thanksgiving holiday in 2012, Alexander came to his Mom, Denise, and showed her a large lump that was forming beneath his arm. Unable to imagine the worst, Denise and her husband Paul decided to get it checked out by their family doctor. Denise recalls, “We just wanted to rule out anything serious. We knew that it wouldn't actually be cancer. Except that it was.”
Alexander was only 11 years old when he was diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma, a rare form of cancer. For Alex, this meant checking in at Children’s Hospital and immediately beginning chemotherapy. For Denise and Paul, it was a parent’s worst nightmare.
“We had to figure out how to manage his care, administer his many medications and monitor him for signs that he might have fever and neutropenia - what was that again? What do you mean I have to put on gloves to handle medicine that I am going to give to my child to ingest? There were lots of tears, his and mine.”
The next few months, their family was in and out of the hospital. Alexander had to drop out of the activities that most 11 year olds take for granted- sports, clubs and play dates with friends became impossible, as his chest port made him fragile and treatments exhausted him.
In March of 2013, only four months after Alexander’s cancer diagnosis, he attended the Aspen Winter Games with Shining Stars Foundation.
Denise explains the impact the week had on her son, “At first he was a bit scared. This time, overcoming his fear led to great fun, rather than tolerating another painful procedure. It gave him the chance to get away from everything and do something that made him feel powerful and exhilarated. The one-on-one ski instruction let him learn at his own pace. He met other kids going through the same things.”
After Alexander returned from Winter Games, their entire family was invited to all subsequent Shining Stars events and activities. Like so many of our families, Denise explains the value of these programs. “This was wonderful because I didn't have to plan anything and we didn't have to find extra money to pay for it. We were up to our necks in medical bills - even with insurance.”
Alexander’s family has continued to attend Shining Stars events, including the Grand County Family Adventure, where they were able to connect with other families who understood what they had been through. “It was helpful to know other families who were going through the same things. To know people at every stage of the cancer journey made us thankful for our blessings and helped us to understand what was coming next. It gave us hope to meet families who have survived treatment and were on the other side,” said Denise.
Thankfully, Alexander is now 20 months off treatment, but they are still grateful for the support network and time out that Shining Stars provides. “Everything is seemingly back to normal, but it feels so different. You feel forever changed by the experience and you are a different person than you were when you embarked on the journey. This can feel lonely and it is helpful to be able to talk to others who have also been through it.”
Unfortunately, Alexander’s story is not unique. For many of the families we serve, the trauma of the cancer experience remains with them long after treatment is complete. Shining Stars Foundation is there for these families from the very beginning until they no longer need us. We provide HOPE and HEALING. We make sure that no child or family has to face and fight their illness alone. YOU make it possible.
Click here to Donate today!
Give what you can to help us make sure no one fights alone.
A Month of Thanksgiving
Here at Shining Stars Foundation, we are reminded each day to be thankful for what we have. It is this gratitude that helps us to see the beauty of life, even in its darkest moments.
Each Friday this month, we will share a story from a Shining Stars child or family. These families are incredibly grateful to you- our donors and supporters- for the support and hope they have been given through Shining Stars. Thanks to you- no one fights cancer or another life-threatening illness alone!
Tune in tomorrow for our first Thanksgiving feature!
it's Winter Games eve!
It may be March, but it feels like Christmas Eve here in Aspen! The Shining Stars 2015 Winter Games officially kicks off tomorrow, upon the arrival of 65 children with cancer or life-threatening illnesses from across the country.
We are busy, busy preparing the Inn at Aspen for what is sure to be an amazing week. Schedule highlights include daily adaptive ski or snowboard instruction out on Buttermilk Mountain, snowmobiling at T Lazy 7 Ranch, the Disco Party at the Aspen Elks Lodge, and SO much more. For a full schedule of the week's events- click here!
Follow us throughout the week for stories of strength and hope. We will also be showcasing some of the amazing sponsors who help make this week a reality. If you would like to Sponsor a Star at the 2015 Winter Games , click here.
BE THE HOPE this week with Shining Stars!
The best way to spread holiday cheer...
...is singing loud for all to hear! We won't subject you to our singing voices BUT we would like to sing the praises of all those who helped make the 2014 Shining Stars Holiday Party and Toy Drive a huge success. We filled over 60 toy boxes throughout the Aspen, Grand County and Denver areas and collected our largest haul of toys yet! It was a good thing, too, because we hosted over 200 children and families at the Shining Stars Holiday Party on December 20th.
The Lakewood Elks once again generously donated space to host our event, and the Denver Rotarians, along with a very special group of volunteers, turned out in numbers to help unpack toys and greet families.
Check out all of those toys! The look on faces of our Shining Stars as they entered the ballroom was absolutely priceless.
Our guests were greeted by the holiday vocal stylings of "Soundz Familiar" and later enjoyed a magic show by Magician Keir Royale. Santa Claus himself was also there to take any last minute toy requests!
When asked what the holiday party means to their families, check out what some of our Shining Stars parents had to say..
"The party was amazing and to us, it's like coming to a family event. Since our son has a compromised immune system, he doesn't go to public school. This is the only holiday party he gets to attend and it's truthfully the only one he wants to attend. Being around all these other families who "get it" makes it the most relaxing wonderful place to be. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" - Shining Star Mom, Sarah.
"To all the generous hearts who donated to the Holiday Party, thank you! Our children's eyes were huge when they saw all the toys they got to choose from. Christmas is so important to us on many levels, but it can be a huge financial burden with 4 children and a life threatening illness to battle. I hope that you are feeling the joy of giving, because you have given this family a lot. Generosity is contagious and we are all moved by your kindness. Have a wonderful and most importantly healthy holiday." - Shining Star Mom, Kim.
We are so incredibly grateful to all those who have helped us make this holiday extra special for children with cancer or life-threatening illness and their families! Stay tuned for more photos of the event, coming soon!
To Old Friends and New- Bites & Bottles 2014
Last Monday, Shining Stars was honored to be the beneficiaries of the 2014 Bites & Bottles fundraiser, presented by the Greater Denver chapter of the National Association of Caterers and Event Planners. The event was hosted at The Infinite Monkey Theorem in Denver and featured delicious food and drink from Denver’s best caterers. The evening was led by our new friend, Master of Ceremonies and former Denver Bronco Reggie Rivers. A great time was had by all! A portion of the proceeds from the evening will be donated to Shining Stars, where 95 cents of every dollars goes DIRECTLY to fund our children’s programs. It's always fun to have a good time for a great cause!
The silent and live auctions were managed by Auctions By Cellular, ABC, a mobile bidding and silent auction technology firm. We were thrilled to see a familiar face among the red shirts with ABC- former Shining Star Brittney, who attended Winter Games in 2001! Brittney works as an ABC Pro while going to nursing school, where she hopes to graduate and become a pediatric oncology nurse. Prior to seeing the Shining Stars crew at the winery, she had no idea who the fundraiser was for. It was truly magical to see Brittney thriving in life so many years after she was a Shining Star in Aspen. Brittney was honored to be a part of the event and even got up to speak during the live auction paddle raiser. She spoke about how important Shining Stars was for her throughout her cancer treatment, and how her experience at Winter Games truly gave her hope for life once again.
Brittney’s success story touched everyone present and reminded us once again why we do what we do. So that kids like Brittney who are forced to look life-threatening illnesses in the face do not have to do so alone. So that these kids can find their inner strength and conquer whatever life throws their way. So that they can continue to live and thrive with passion, just as Brittney has.
We had a great time reconnecting with old friends and making new ones at this fabulous event. Thanks again to NACE for having us and helping us raise money to bring HOPE to children who truly need it.
