Help and Hope Happen Here

Max Manyak met 10 year old Ian McMillan who was battling Leukemia through a Notre Dame University program called Fighting Irish Fighting For Life in early 2020. Then Covid hit and while Max was back home in California he communicated with Ian. Upon returning to school he decided to send Max videos of what was happening during the Lacrosse practices that he and his teammates were taking part in. As Team Captain, Max encouraged his teammates to do the same. 
Shortly after that, Max created the non profit PEDIATRIC PEP TALK, which now involves all team members of the 26 varsity sports at Notre Dame. The focus of this non profit is for student athletes to create their own videos to these kids suffering from Pediatric Cancer to put a smile on their faces. As of now  the University of Arkansas, Indiana University, Northwestern, and Western Kentucky have signed up for this program with many Universities on the horizon. This program is in its infancy and will surely grow by leaps and bounds over the coming years.

https://donorbox.org/healing-smiles-pediatric-peptalk.
Instagram- @pediatric.peptalk
Twitter @PediatricPeptlk
Email  [email protected]

Hailey Adams was 3 years old when her older sister Hannah was diagnosed with a Wilms Tumor. Even though she was so young , Hailey remembers watching her older sister go through such a tough but ultimately successful cancer battle. 3 years later at the age of 6, Hailey began her advocacy work for Pediatric Cancer by joining the American Cancer Society's Relay For LIfe.
Now 17 years old and a High School Senior, Hailey has continued her advocacy work on many levels and is also completing her 1 year term as Miss Alabama's Outstanding Teen.. 

Rachael Walkup is the Resources Project Manager for the Non-Profit LIGHTHOUSE 
FAMILY RETREAT. This Non -Profit sets up seaside settings in Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina to invite families dealing with Pediatric Cancer to get away from thinking about Pediatric Cancer for one week to enjoy life. Rachael will talk about these retreats and the many activities that take place. Racheal will also talk about their 3 day Regional Retreats, their One Day Retreats, and their week long Bereavement Retreats. 

It is always so inspiring to hear about children who are diagnosed with Pediatric Cancer and they are still able to find it in themselves to give back to others even when undergoing treatment. We will hear a story just like this today as Jessica LaBella will talk about her daughter Anna, who was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma in July of 2019 when she was 9 years old. Anna spent the next 3 years giving back to other Pediatric Cancer patients and started her Anna's Sunflower Warriors  Organization which  Jessica is now turning into a 501C 3 Non- Profit. 

Anna passed away on August 2nd of 2022 at the age of 12, exactly 6 months after this podcast was being published. 

Melissa and James Fleming's son Brock was out for a simple walk with James and his sister Jenna on May 4th of 2016 when he fell and hit his head. Brock suffered a severe concussion, one that was so bad that for a brief time he called his mother DAD, and his father, MOM. Everything looked fine in his neurological examination but when Brock smiled, his doctor was concerned and sent him to have an MRI. Unfortunately the MRI showed that Brock had DIPG, the worst form of Pediatric Brain Cancer.
Brock's mom Melissa will talk about Brock and his DIPG Battle which came to an end when he passed away on December 10th of 2016, just 7 months after his original diagnosis. 

Lucy Grogan was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia when she was 8 years old. By the time she was 11 she decided that she was "Done" with cancer and wanted to do something to help other Pediatric Cancer patients.  On today's podcast Executive Director Jackie Walker will talk about the Non-Profit LUCY'S LOVE BUS which Lucy started, 6 months before her passing at the age of 12.  This Non-Profit focuses on bringing Integrative Therapies to these kids which bring them comfort as they battle with their individual cancer treatments . 

Not only are dogs man's best friends, they also have many common traits when it comes to the subject of cancer. On today's podcast, Dr. Elaine Ostrander will talk about the many similarities that the canine and human specie have when it comes to cancer, including similar forms of cancer, similar treatment protocols that they experience, and similar clinical trails that can work for both species.  Dr. Ostrander started the Canine Genome Project and has worked at the National Institute of Health for the past 18 years. 

Hannah Adams began her Pediatric Cancer advocacy work when she was just 8 years old, becoming the youngest captain in Florida for the Relay For Life event that is sponsored by the American Cancer Society. That was followed up by her being chosen at the age of 12 to be the National Youth Ambassador for Hyundai Motors for their Hope on Wheels Program. Hannah will talk about her incredible advocacy work for Pediatric Cancer, which was preceded by her own battle with a Wilms Tumor when she was 5 1/2 years old. 
Hannah is now a sophomore at the University of Alabama, is the reigning Miss Birmingham, and has previously been voted the outstanding Teen in Florida and the outstanding National Teen by the Miss America organization. 

In 2014 after having trouble swallowing, Paoola Sefair was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer. In 2020 Paoola  was diagnosed again with cancer but the good news is that there is now No Evidence Of Disease. Paoola will talk about her cancer battles and will also talk about her Informational App MY CARE CREW that she started along with her friend Aneshka, which allows anyone involved in a cancer battle to communicate with others who are going through this same battle themselves. 

After hurting his leg as a sophomore in high school during a school football game in 2010, Ian Lock  went to his pediatrician who saw a dark spot on his leg while examining him. This spot turned out to be Osteosarcoma. Ian went through the usual difficult treatment for this most common form of bone cancer, and fortunately he did not suffer a relapse which so many Osteosarcoma patients do.
Ian then decided to become an advocate through the American Cancer Society for Pediatric Cancer while still in high school and then while in college, decided to do research on such pediatric  cancers as Hepatoblastoma, Leukemia , and Osteosarcoma.
Ian is now going after his PHD in Molecular Cancer Biology from Duke University and his career path is geared towards in some way helping Pediatric Cancer patients find an easier path to handle their own cancer battles.