Stop. Think. Imagine…

December 17, 2015

Stop what you’re doing, and follow me for a minute…

Think back to when you were 16. Recall what you were doing on a day like today. The holidays are here. All the hopes of the new year are swirling.

Now, imagine being homeless when you were 16.

Then, imagine going through cancer treatment at 16, while homeless.

This story was a reality for Pablove Shutterbugs student Areisy.

When we met Areisy last year, she enthusiastically threw herself into her Shutterbugs program. She found joy in the community Shutterbugs brought to her life. She shot beautiful, clever images.

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Self-portrait by Ariesy, Tacoma, WA, 2014

Then, after graduation, Areisy, still 16, still homeless, passed away. This news shook our team.

We are honored to have known her, and we are so grateful to still feel her presence through her photos.

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“Untitled” by Areisy, available for purchase on Pablove Prints

This young lady’s story exemplifies why we need your support to continue sourcing and funding innovative research in the severely underfunded field of childhood cancer.

I am reminded every day that childhood cancer does not discriminate. Jeff and I saw this firsthand when Pablo was in treatment in 2008-2009. Cancer affects kids and teens from all walks of life. It spares no ethnic group, socioeconomic class, or geographic region.

Enter Dr. Kira Bona, a young researcher at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. She presented an innovative proposal for something that stopped us in our tracks: What about the challenges pediatric cancer creates outside the body? How does a child’s economic and social class affect their treatment – and survival?

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Kira Bona, M.D., M.P.H.
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

We know that children are less likely to survive cancer if they come from a low-income household. This is a problem within the problem of kids’ cancer. We are proud to be at the forefront of contributing to real solutions that ensure a future where all kids have an equal chance of being cured. Regardless of what neighborhood they come from.

Now, enter: YOU!

You have supported us in the past. Perhaps every year. So you know that none of this work can happen without our collective efforts – and without your support. Join me in funding ONE more seed grant in 2016 for the important scientific investigators and problem solvers desperately trying to cure pediatric cancer.

Our goal is $50,000. We know it’s possible with your support. Together we will continue to shine a bright light in the childhood cancer community.

Give today.

With gratitude
and
pablove,
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Jo Ann Thrailkill
Pablo’s Mommy

P.S. Donate $100 or more and receive this amazing poster which illustrates Dr. Bona’s research – lovingly created by Rachel Ignotofsky.

innovate

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