Gators Beat Blood Cancer Team:

Inès Andrès (candidate)

Grace & Olivia Yang

Alyssa Diess

Ellie Brewer

Meaghan Kilner

Madeleine Sateri

Dear Friends and Family,

Welcome to my fundraising page!

I am honored to have been accepted as a candidate in the 2018 Students of the Year program, a seven-week initiative in which select high school students from around the country participate in a fundraising competition to benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I am raising critical dollars in honor of a my Stone Ridge classmate and friend, Meaghan Kilner, who was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphona at age fifteen. Meaghan is one of the smartest and most passionate people I have ever met. After intensive treatment, months in a hospital and many prayers, Meaghan went into remission! Unfortunately, a few months ago at the beginning of our sophomore year, Meaghan was re-diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Nevertheless, Meaghan continues to fight. She maintains a rigorous academic schedule, continues to rehearse and play her violin at our school masses, and tirelessly dedicates herself to the work of LLS and in particular, to our Gators Beat Blood Cancer team. Meaghan truly embodies one of Stone Ridge's mottos, "Gator Strong." Every day she battles the intense pain and the emotional task of living with cancer. Meaghan is the strongest Gator I know!

The candidate whose team raises the most money at the end of the seven weeks is named Student of the Year. So every dollar counts. My mission is to not only raise the most money, but also to raise awareness among my peers regarding this horrible disease. Leukemia still causes more deaths than any other cancer among children under the age of twenty. In 2018, 15,270 children ages 1-19 will be diagnosed with blood cancer. The main message of the Students of the Year campaign is that children should be working to solve problems that are facing our generation. So that’s what I am doing! I have the power to make a difference, and you can help make that possible.

Please consider supporting Gators Beat Blood Cancer, not just for Meaghan, but for all the children who are battling this awful disease. The money raised will go directly to support LLS and its longstanding mission to find a cure and to improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

Don't stop there! Please visit my team's Facebook and Instagram pages @gatorsbeatbloodcancer to see all the events we have scheduled during the seven week campaign. Please feel free to forward this message to your friends and family who might like to donate.

On behalf of my Gators Beat Blood Cancer team and blood cancer patients and their families everywhere I thank you for your support!

For more information about LLS, please visit www.lls.org or email me at fciatto20@stoneridgeschool.org