Everyone of my peers understands that this is a period of our life where we get do decide what type of person we want to be in our future. I remember Freshman Year when our Freshman Studies teacher asked, "What are your goals and how can they benefit others?" I remember thinking of my goals and I really couldn't pinpoint exactly how they would benefit others. It began to bother me because I really wanted to do something meaningful in life that would involve me benefitting others in many different ways. When I began volunteering at the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, I noticed the many different ways LLS benefits people and immediately wanted to be a part of that. Therefore, being nominated for the Students of the Year was the best thing ever for me because I now have a goal that is not selfish but will do lots of good to others. Every 3 minutes one person in the United States is diagnosed with a blood cancer. This statistic shows the darkness of blood cancers. I like to think of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as a light and any darkness can go away with light. 

You may not know anybody personally who has been afflicted with blood cancer but it is affecting a lot of others out there. That should be enough to join together and do something about it. 

So please, help me raise money so that the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society can keep benfitting others out there and fight against blood cancers. 

I am honored to participate as a team member for the 2019 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 proud to support my candidate and am raising critical dollars in honor of a young patient hero who is currently battling or is in remission from a blood cancer. Each dollar is a vote. 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.