In August 2009, at age 12, Sarah Barr was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a type of bone cancer, in her right femur. From August 2009 to April 2010, Sarah had 14 rounds of inpatient chemotherapy. Extra hospital time came when she was so sick from treatment or when she ran unexpected fevers. The tumor was surgically removed in December 2009, and a portion of Sarah’s femur was removed as a result. To replace the missing bone, a segment of a femur from a cadaver was put in.
When Sarah was on treatment, an elementary school in Locust Grove held a “caps” day for the Barr family, raising more than $350. A school employee, the sister of a close friend of the Barrs, shared Sarah’s story with others at the school which led to the idea to hold the “caps” fundraiser.
Sarah and her family were moved by the generosity. “This touched us for many reasons,” says Heather Barr, Sarah’s mom. “Obviously because it is so kind and such a show of support for Sarah, but even more than that – it was a school full of people that didn’t even know Sarah, yet they wanted to get involved. With Sarah being home schooled and this school not even being where our neighborhood would be zoned to go, I was floored by this act!”
Heather was really inspired by the school’s fundraising efforts. She explains, “I thought if they can raise $350 for a family when there is a specific need, just think what could be raised by schools for childhood cancer in general if we shared the need and they caught the excitement about this. When you are only asking for $1 per child, almost everyone can join the fight, at no great sacrifice, and the combined total can still be amazing.”
Heather and Sarah contacted area schools and encouraged them to hold “Caps for CURE” days. Students would be allowed to wear their favorite cap for the day, with a donation of $1.00 to CURE Childhood Cancer. Not only do students love the novelty of wearing a cap to school, but the event is also symbolic of the hats, caps, and bandannas cancer patients wear during their treatment. Many of the schools Heather and Sarah approached jumped on board. In September alone, fourteen schools raised more than $3300 for CURE.
“To me,” says Heather, “these schools that have joined together are living out the Helen Keller quote, ‘Alone we can do so little. Together we can do so much.’”
“We are so inspired by Caps for CURE,” says CURE Executive Director Kristin Connor. “The money raised through this initiative will go to fund life-saving research into cancers affecting children, giving hope to kids like Sarah,” continued Connor. “Most importantly, the ‘kids helping kids’ aspect of this initiative is so special. This is really about school children helping their peers — their friends. We think this plants the seeds for selflessness and thoughtfulness, and we are so proud of Sarah for fostering these traits.”
During the holidays most of us spend time with all of our families, sitting around the dinner table enjoying homecooked meals and treats. However, for the families of children battling cancer, their time is spent in the hospital. To ensure that these children, their families, and the hospital staff are not left out from the holiday traditions, Greg and Ginger Kindred – parents of one of CURE’s Kids, Trenton Kindred – organize and host a Holiday Feast at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
They came to CURE through the “A Tribute to Our Quiet Heroes” luncheon. Kathy, working her fledgling poundcake business out of her home, was approached while peddling her cakes by a Quiet Heroes volunteer who thought the little baby cakes would make perfect table gifts for attendees of the luncheon. When asked about baking five hundred cakes, Kathy didn’t hesitate. Opening her first store just days in advance of the second annual luncheon, Kathy and husband Tim became fast and furious supporters of CURE.
CURE was nominated by Atlanta’s Paula Fowler, Senior Vice President of Operations. “I nominated CURE because it is close to my heart,” explains Paula. In 2000, dear friends of the Fowlers lost a son to neuroblastoma. That experience really impacted the Fowlers. In addition, Paula thought childhood cancer would have “universal” appeal to all CresaPartners’ offices across the U.S. “Everyone knows someone whose lives have been impacted by cancer,” says Paula.
Why is having a PCP important?
Originally developed for the treatment of HIV to block viral entry into white blood cells, Plerixafor proved expensive to produce and sat unused for a long time until doctors discovered its use in stem cell transplants for patients with leukemia and lymphoma. The drug helps extract the stem cells living in bone marrow and transfers them into the circulatory system, making it easier to destroy cancerous cells with chemotherapy. “Leukemia cells often hide in bone marrow, making them much more difficult to destroy with traditional chemotherapy methods,” explained Dr. Horan, who attended New Jersey Medical School and did his residency and fellowship at the University of Rochester Medical Center. During his fellowship, he began his study of adult and pediatric hematology stem cell transplantation.
In 2002, X-rays of a nagging stress fracture in Sam’s left knee led to the diagnosis of osteosarcoma, bone cancer. After chemotherapy and limb salvage surgery, essentially a knee replacement, Sam knew his promising football career was over. Instead of dwelling on what he couldn’t do, he focused on a new goal: to become a baseball pitcher. Although it did not come easy, particularly with a prosthetic knee, he managed to play for a highly competitive East Cobb team. He even pitched and won the final game of a world series in Tampa. Sam went on to play baseball at Young Harris College and was enrolled at Clemson University for the Fall of 2007.
It’s an unfair race. A young, defenseless child up against an insidious, growing army of merciless cancer cells. Doctors, hospitals, and scientists constantly at the mercy of treatment and research breakthroughs, which are only made possible by the hard reality of financial funding.
