I am honored to share that I have been selected as a candidate for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Student Visionaries of the Year Campaign (SVOY). Student Visionaries of the Year is a fundraising competition among a select group of high school students in our community who compete to raise funds for LLS. The candidate team who raises the most funds during the seven-week campaign period will be awarded with the title of Student Visionary of the Year. 

I have signed on as a Candidate to truly try to make an impact in the fight against cancer with an ambitious goal of fundraising $100,000. This mission is especialy important to me because everyone has a connection to cancer they wish they didn't. My grandpa, one of the greatest men I ever knew, and also the man I was named after, had his life taken from him by cancer when he was only 78, and I was 12. All three of my other grandparents have battled cancer at one time or another. So when I first heard about this campaign, I was excited. I was excited because I realized this campaign could be a great way for me to actually help in the fight against cancer. I truly believe that my generation will be one of the last to see cancer and I intend to do everything in my power to make that dream a reality.

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is the largest donor to blood cancer research in the nation. They have invested nearly $1.3 billion in research, and are leaders in advancing breakthroughs in immunotherapy, genomics and personalized medicine. These revolutionary new treatments originally discovered through blood cancer research are now being tested in clinical trials for other cancers. 

My campaign provides an opportunity to support the critical work of LLS in combating these diseases.  I am honoring those who have battled blood cancers and raising money that will go directly to LLS in support of its longstanding mission to find a cure and improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

Be part of finding the cure and help Team The Knights Against Cancer in the St. Louis Students of the Year campaign. For more information, please contact me at hoffmanwill8@gmail.com. For more information about LLS and the Student Visionaries of the Year Campaign, please visit: https://www.lls.org/student-visionaries-of-the-year.