A letter from SHS senior Magdalena Macias...
I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime to help others. Each year, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) launches its Student of the Year fundraising campaign, and I was honored to join this year’s efforts as a candidate. I am writing today to ask for your support of LLS’s mission in its efforts to find cures for blood cancers and to assist patients and families as they battle this disease. Last year alone, more than $2 million was raised by 400 high school students throughout the country. I know that y'all control social media for Springdale High School. I was hoping that you'd support my campaign online and aid me in getting on the district's social media. Currently, I have two ways to donate. One is the link I've attached, and another is my Facebook fundraiser which can be found on my page (Magdalena Macias).
From February 28th – April 17th, our team goal is to raise more $50,000 which will go directly to LLS in support of its longstanding goal: a world without blood cancers. Additionally, if we raise over $50K we can link our team name to an LLS-funded research portfolio to honor our efforts to help people with blood cancers.
Blood cancer affects everyone: rich, poor, young, old, white, black, etc. It has an impact on the patients' lives and their families. As a future physician, I want to start making a change now. This cause allows me and my team to use words to unite not separate. Therefore, running a campaign to help fund the fight against cancer is how I chose to take action. To change the game and lead others to find a cure once and for all.
There are many reasons to be proud to support LLS’s efforts. For instance, approximately 40% of new cancer therapies approved by the FDA between 2000 and 2015 were first approved for blood cancer patients. And many of these LLS-supported therapies not only help blood cancer patients but are now approved to treat patients with rare forms of stomach and skin cancers, and noncancerous diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases. They're even being tested in clinical trials for patients with a range of cancers including lung, brain, breast, pancreatic and prostate cancers, and noncancerous diseases such as diabetes and lupus.
This is an organization that is making an impact with the dollars it raises, and I’m proud to be associated with LLS.
This is where you come in. I'm ready to be a game-changer. Are you?