While you may be surprised to see me as a "Student of the Year" - please know that I am doing so to help raise awareness and fundraise for a very worthy cause, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. This past year a friend of my brother, DC, was diagnosed with ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). Instead of attending to his sophomore year in college, he returned home to Cleveland where he has bravely faced chemotherapy and treatment for the past several months. He has returned to college where he will continue treatments to fight this disease. Throughout his treatment we wondered what we could do to help this family that we love. So, I decided to join this organization and try to raise money and awareness with our family friends in mind. I have enlisted a team of friends who have dedicated themselves to helping raise money for LLS. We are Team Red Raiders! The candidate team that raises the most money at the end of the seven weeks is named Student of the Year. Our mission is to not only raise the most money but also to bring attention to blood cancers like leukemia, which is the most common form of cancer in children and teens.

Since the early 1960s, five-year survival rates for many blood cancer patients have doubled, tripled or even quadrupled. And many LLS supported therapies not only help blood cancer patients but are helping patients with other cancers and serious diseases. In fact, drugs first approved for blood cancers are now approved to treat patients with stomach cancers, skin cancers, and autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.

We really are changing the face of blood cancer!

All donations are greatly appreciated and are tax deductible. They'll not only support LLS-funded research but will help provide critical information and support for patients, and support advocacy for laws to ensure patients can access the care and treatments they need.

Please visit our website often and bring friends who would also like to donate!

On behalf of blood cancer patients everywhere, thank you for your support!

For more information about LLS, please visit www.lls.org.