After 15 years of participating in The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Light the Night Walk in Washington, DC, my granddaughters, Ella and Emery Stratman (ages 17 and 15) are stepping up their efforts to raise money to fund research, patient care, and advocacy in honor of my late husband, Jack, and all those who have been touched my blood cancers, by participating in the 2021 Students of the Year campaign, which runs from January 23 - March 13. Over the past few months, Team Grampa, led by Ella and Emery, has been soliciting funds from businesses and has set up a Virtual 5K Race that will take place in February. I applaud their initiative, as it is a big commitment to attempt to raise $50,000, especially in this year of COVID. (Last year, 35 student-led teams raised $2.7 million for the Washington DC Chapter of LLS!)

As many of you know, Jack fought a valiant battle with lymphoma for 26 ½ years, including two bone marrow transplants and multiple rounds of chemo and radiation, before succumbing to the disease in December, 2009. Jack always believed that his long-term survival and quality of life was due to the cutting-edge treatments that he received as a result of the efforts of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. In the last three years, LLS funded 55 of the 65 FDA approved treatments for blood cancers, many of which have also been used to treat other types of cancer – a truly remarkable feat.

As always, we are grateful to our family and friends who have supported LLS over the years. I hope that you will consider making a gift in memory of Grampa Jack. He would be so proud of “his girls” for forming such an enthusiastic and committed team who are working so hard to raise money to fulfill his hope and dream of beating cancer.

Thank you for your continued support,

Susan

Grampa and his girls

For more information about LLS, please visit lls.org