Tag Archive for: charlotte pediatric cancer

Handbags, Heels & Horsepower, November 15th

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A room full of women who love fashion and want to make a difference.  Handbags. Heels. Mimosas. Breakfast. The newest vehicle models. Syndicated radio host, podcaster and best-selling author, Sheri Lynch.  We love this new kind of charity morning the Charlotte Auto Show (CAS) will be hosting in just 2 weeks with proceeds benefiting rare pediatric cancer research. 

We hope you will join us at Handbags, Heels & Horsepower at the Charlotte Convention Center on Thursday, November 15th, 9-11:30am.  Over 30 high-end handbags and heels will be up for raffle on the showroom floor of the Charlotte Auto Show.  You will have the opportunity to enjoy mimosas or cups of coffee while perusing the selection of retail options and beautiful new vehicles.  

A fun morning with friends as you try and snag that must-have bag, all while making an impact on kids fighting cancer in our Charlotte region.  You will see brands like Gucci, Saint Lurent, Manola Blahnik, Chloe, Rebecca Minkoff, Jimmy Choo, Tory Burch, Louis Vuitton, Kate Spade and more.

Tickets include: 

  • Admission
  • One raffle ticket
  • Free parking at the NASCAR Hall of Fame (arrive early, parking will be based on availability)
  • Beverages & breakfast.  

But make sure to increase your odds of winning that coveted handbag or heel and  purchase additional raffle tickets.  If purchased prior to November 15th, raffle tickets will be available for pick up during check-in of Handbags, Heels & Horsepower with your name/number already written on them. Believe us… that will be a huge time saver for you!

PURCHASE TICKETS & PRE-PURCHASE RAFFLE TICKETS

“I know I speak for all our local dealers in the Greater Charlotte Auto Dealers Association that we are all very proud and excited to add a new dimension of fun and giving to the annual Charlotte Auto Show.This year, we are introducing Handbags, Heels & Horsepower.Women influence more than 80% of the car buying decisions nationwide and we’re excited to have a charity event designed specifically with them in mind.We are equally excited that our charity partner for the first ever Handbags, Heels & Horsepower breakfast is the Isabella Santos Foundation.ISF is a major force locally in raising awareness and funding for treatment of rare pediatric cancer in our region.” -Jim Keffer, harlotte Auto Show Chairman

Shining a Spotlight on Joedance Film Festival

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Joedance Film Festival is held in memory of Joe

What started as a neighborhood outdoor movie night has evolved into a successful Charlotte film festival to raise funds for pediatric cancer research.

Joedance Film Festival is held the first weekend in August in Charlotte. This year marked the 9th annual festival and a major milestone for growth. Originally held in a townhome courtyard in Uptown Charlotte, Joedance recently expanded to the Charlotte Ballet Center of Dance. Several hundred people gathered for this year’s event, which screened 13 short films by film directors, writers and producers who have a Charlotte connection.

“This was the first year it was at the Charlotte Ballet Center for Dance and it was fabulous,” said Diane, Joe’s mom and founding president of Joedance Film Festival. “Changing venues was good for the festival. It felt like we grew up!”

The two-day film festival is held in memory of Joe who passed away at age 20 from bone cancer in 2010. Funds raised support rare pediatric cancer research and clinical trials at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital. Many of the things that Joedance funds came from discussions that Joe’s family had with him before he passed away.

“As a family, we had time to deal with Joe’s cancer,” said Diane, Joe’s mom and founding president of Joedance Film Festival. “He was of an age to understand what was going on and wanted us to continue to raise funds for Levine Children’s Hospital. For him to make a list of what he wanted us to do gave us a clear path.”

The Charlotte Ballet Center of Dance is now home to Joedance Film Festival

In fulfilling Joe’s wishes, the organization established a paid summer internship program at Levine Children’s Hospital for college students in the medical field. It also funds the recurrent bone cancer trial at Jeff Gordon Children’s Hospital and the Isabella Santos Foundation. It has also committed to fund first-line research technicians at Levine Children’s Hospital’s pediatric cancer research lab, which will open in 2019. For the past six years, Joedance coordinates Modern Salon & Spa to do a spa day every other month for the parents at Levine Children’s Hospital. To date, Joedance has donated over $150,000 to Levine Children’s Hospital.

Joedance is also the beneficiary of the Premier Property Solutions Panthers Tailgate Party. The next one will take place on Sunday, November 4 at 1341 S. Mint Street. If you’re in the area, stop by and support Joedance while cheering on our Carolina Panthers.

Pounding for Parker

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Parker and his brother

It’s no wonder why so many people are pounding for Parker. His strength, resiliency and determination are such an inspiration.

Parker was nearly seven years old when diagnosed with a very rare tumor on his spine. His cancer, which originated between one of his vertebrae, runs from his tail bone up into his lower brain. Because the tumor was mixed in with nerves in his spinal column, it was too risky to remove. So Parker underwent two different types of chemotherapy, which he completed in May 2017.

He also has more nerve damage in his left hand, but doesn’t let that stop him. Today, the fun-spirited nine-year-old is in third grade and has resumed school and his favorite sport – lacrosse. As part of his ongoing therapy, Parker continues to get monthly checkups and quarterly MRIs at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital.

“He’s doing really well; living life like a normal kid and being a great big brother,” said his mom, Allison. “He has lots of energy, a good sense of humor and is very driven.”

Pounding for Parker Foundation check presentation to Levine Children’s Hospital

Because Parker may need additional therapy in the future and that there is no cure for his disease, his parents – Allison and Jonathan – launched the Pounding for Parker Foundation in 2017. The Foundation hosts an annual golf tournament, gala and other community events to raise funds to advance research for pediatric brain tumors and improve the quality of life for childhood cancer survivors. In its first year, the Pounding for Parker Foundation presented $100,000 to the Levine Children’s Hospital Brain Tumor Survivorship Clinic.

Among the organization’s fundraisers this year is the Pounding For Parker Foundation Gala. It will take place on Thursday, October 4 at 7:00 p.m. at Sweet Magnolia Estate in Cornelius. There will be a silent and live auction, chef-prepared food stations, beer, wine and live music. In addition, the silent auction will be online starting Thursday, September 27. For more information, to purchase tickets and to check out the silent auction, visit https://poundingforparker.org/event/.

“We’re excited to be in the Charlotte community and to give back to Levine Children’s Hospital,” said Allison. “Our doctors are like family and have really been there for us. We want to do everything we can to find a cure for pediatric brain tumors and come up with solutions for the many issues that pediatric cancer survivors face.”

An Army of Support

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Emily and Kevin know firsthand the impact an army of support can provide a family during a crisis. Their daughter, Claire, was 19 months old when she was diagnosed with Stage 4 neuroblastoma in 2011. They received an incredible outpouring of support and wanted to do the same for other families fighting childhood cancer. So they created Claire’s Army to honor Claire – who passed away in January 2012 – and to continue her legacy of her love for others.

Claire

“Our friends, family, employers, strangers and the hospital teams did so much for us during Claire’s treatments and our time of grief,” said Emily. “We wanted to do for others what others did for us.”

Through Emily and Kevin’s grief counseling at KinderMourn, time spent with other hospital families and discussions with medical providers, they realized that not everyone had support when going through a similar situation. This led to creating the following core programs at Claire’s Army:

CLAIRE PACKAGES: Claire’s Army provides a package to a new family facing a childhood cancer diagnosis at Novant Health Hemby Children’s Hospital and at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital. The Claire Package utility tote includes towels, a journal, a gas card and additional comfort items. Valued at $150, the package helps make a family’s hospital stay more comfortable and saves them a trip to the store.

MEAL PROGRAM: Claire’s Army has several restaurant partners and a team of volunteers to deliver made-to-order meals to families at Hemby Children’s Hospital five nights a week. Their goal is to expand to Levine Children’s Hospital in the near future. Since starting this program in February 2014, Claire’s Army has delivered 4,000 meals, which offset a financial burden, provide options beyond hospital food and foster family time.

EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM: Claire’s Army works through oncology social workers to pay for bills to help families who are suffering financially. Emergency assistance can range from mortgage/rent payments, utilities and travel needs to insurance. In one case, Claire’s Army was able to purchase an airline ticket at the last minute for a grandmother to fly roundtrip from El Salvador to attend her grandson’s funeral service. To date, the organization has provided nearly $30,000 of emergency assistance through this program.

“We want to be able to help in any way we can and to make an already awful situation suck less,” said Emily who also spent a few years as a nurse assistant at Hemby Children’s Hospital. “As a hospital provider, it was heartbreaking to see what families go through during a diagnosis, especially if the family was alone with no other support.”

Claire’s Army hosts an annual gala – which raised $200,000 this year – and other fundraisers throughout the year. Funds support these core programs, as well as pediatric cancer research through nonprofits like the Isabella Santos Foundation.

“Claire’s life was very brief, but very impactful,” added Emily. “We hope that the work we are doing is an extension of our love for her and her love for others. We want to carry that on and help these families one at time.”

Inspiring Others to Live Mutual

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By Tim Flanagan, President of MassMutual Carolinas, 2018 ISF Sustaining Sponsor

Tim Flanagan and Caitlin Flanagan at the ISF 5K/10K for Kids Cancer

MassMutual Carolinas is proud to be a Sustaining Sponsor of the Isabella Santos Foundation. As a General Agency of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), we are backed by a mutually owned company that has helped people keep their promises, protect their families, and support their communities since 1851. MassMutual calls it Living Mutual, and it’s in their DNA. Ours too: along with MassMutual, we have been committed to serving our clients and giving back to our community since our doors first opened in 1890.

We pride ourselves on living out our core values – balance, growth, authenticity, conviction and stewardship – and ensuring that our clients have a secure financial future and protect the ones they love. Through this and living mutual, we are committed to inspiring others to rely on one another, give back, be interdependent to achieve happiness, make meaningful contributions and to be interconnected with our families, community and workplace.

The concept of living mutual is the core of our involvement with ISF. I have felt personally connected with the organization from day one when I ran – along with Caitlin Flanagan, my daughter and our firm’s strategic relationship manager – my first ISF 5K/10K for Kids Cancer. We hit the ground running in our support of this incredible organization and never looked back. Since then, many of our team members have gotten involved, followed by our firm becoming a Sustaining Sponsor in 2017.

The Isabella Santos Foundation is an upstanding and authentic organization that we value and believe in for many reasons. We appreciate being part of this amazing team, seeing where the funds are going in our community, and being inspired by the faces of who ISF supports. Through our partnership with ISF, we are relying on one another to make a meaningful contribution and impact on pediatric cancer research and patients. That’s a powerful way to live mutual.

Visit the MassMutual Carolinas website

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Timothy C. Flanagan, Jr., CLU, ChFC, CFP®, ChSNC™, CFBS, President of MassMutual Carolinas, is a registered representative of and offers securities, investment advisory and financial planning services through MML Investors Services, LLC Member SIPC (www.SIPC.org). Supervisory Office: 4350 Congress Street Suite 300, Charlotte, NC 28209 (704) 557-9600. Parent Financial is not a subsidiary or affiliate of MML Investors Services, LLC. CRN202008-235692