Pediatric Cancer - Children, Families, and Care Centers

When Sofia was 5 years old, her best friend was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called RMD, or Rhabdomyosarcoma. The thought of what her friend and his family were going through had a profound effect on her.

We visited him at the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center just prior to him beginning treatments, and she took notice of how lovingly cared for these kids were. Everything from games and toys, to nurses who got joyfully teary when they saw them holding hands down the hallway. She wondered if there was anything else they needed, and that wonderment is what caused her to choose this as her mission for Creating Hope Foundation’s 2nd official year.

Her initial plan was to collect donations of things like soft, fuzzy socks, lavender eye pillows, silk pillowcases, lotions and balms, nausea relief items, and more. She wanted to bring her friends Batman and Elsa and Anna with her to deliver the gifts to the kids at The Melodies Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at Albany Med, where her friend had received such love and incredible treatment, however, due to COVID, we knew that wouldn’t be possible this year. Instead, we came up with some new ideas.

This year, we’re raising funds online in hopes of collecting enough donations to build an annual grant program.