CEO message child life support
Thank you for making 2023 so memorable!
Your generosity created a healing community for more than 400 families, providing a sense of belonging and acceptance during their cancer crisis.
With your support, we funded advances in pediatric cancer research and hospital care while offering more than 20 year-round programs and services designed to address the complex needs of children affected by cancer.
You are at the heart of everything we do at Kids Cancer Care and our 2023 Gratitude Report demonstrates the many ways your generosity transforms lives.
I am inspired by your commitment and support, and as I prepare to move into retirement this spring, I know I am leaving Kids Cancer Care in good hands because Kids Cancer Care has YOU.
Thank you for playing a vital role in the care and support of children and families affected by cancer.
Sincerely,
Christine McIver, M.S.M., LLD (Hon), CFRE Founder and Chief Executive Officer
you're helping kids to manage big feelings
“Mira gets to go to the hospital, and she gets all these cool things that I don’t.” — Titus.
By cool things, Titus was referring to his sister’s ambulance ride and radiation mask.
At age six, Titus didn’t understand that his big sister Mira was fighting for her life. She was enduring invasive medical procedures, MRIs, emergency brain surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. All Titus knew was that Mira and Mom were spending way too much time at the hospital, and he wasn’t invited. Siblings of children with cancer experience their own journey of cancer. They experience feelings of loneliness, confusion, and even anger and resentment, for being left out.
Exploring his feelings through intentional play, Titus learned to identify his feelings and develop coping skills to manage them.
During the five-week program, made possible by you, Titus met one-to-one with our child life specialist to make slime, stress balloons, and bubbles. He learned to squeeze the slime or stress balloons when he’s upset or take a deep breath to blow bubbles. He also shared his feelings about cancer.
“Titus loves it!” his mother Bridget says. “It’s helping him to sort through all of his feelings and all the stuff that’s been thrown at him.”
Now when Titus gets triggered, he tells his parents he’s going to his room to think about it. When he reemerges, he’s calm. “He’ll say, ‘Sorry, I was just feeling frustrated or angry,’” says Bridget. “This is a priceless gift. Being able to manage his feelings will make him a better adult.”
Both Mira and Titus are also involved in the PEER exercise program, and they have both enjoyed time at Camp Kindle.
Parents do their best to keep things normal, but siblings still miss out — whether it’s dance class or soccer practice or help with their homework. They miss their family as it used to be. With your support, we developed a sibling program to help kids like Titus. The program was developed by our certified child life specialist to help siblings of children with cancer explore complex feelings that are just too big and overwhelming for a child.
As Mira moves through her treatment, she is growing stronger every day. She’s starting to say things like, “I wanna’ go back to school. When does my line come out? When do I go back to normal? I’m excited to go to camp.”
“A couple of months ago, she wasn’t talking that way,” says Bridget. “Now, she’s looking forward to the future.”
Thank you for helping kids navigate the foreign world of a sibling’s cancer.
Titus and Mira learning and having fun during a chid life session last April.
Unique Perspectives Photography
therapeutic outreach
education
You are at the heart of everything we do. There are so many ways you touch the lives of families facing cancer and its after effects. Here are a few highlights from 2023.
PEER — exercise therapy
Strength, endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination, social connection, wellbeing, rock climbing, rowing, ice skating, golfing, sled hockey, laser tag, lacrosse…
96 kids rebuilding their strength and lifting their spirits during 450+ oneto-one and group-based therapeutic exercise sessions with our Ph.D. exercise specialist and PEER team
counselling & child life services
Compassion, resilience, well-being, healing, hope, empowerment…
18 siblings of children with cancer benefitting from 90 hours of child life services, exploring their feelings and developing healthy coping skills
Learning, discovery, confidence, advocacy, leadership, skills, self-discovery, goals, creativity, teamwork, empowerment, collaboration, careers, learning strategies…
72 kids benefitting from 1,400+ hours of one-to-one tutoring support
281 school children learning about cancer and how to support a classmate battling the disease and its after effects during 7 Cancer in the Classroom sessions
12 childhood cancer survivors pursuing their dreams with the help of a Derek Wandzura Memorial Scholarship
18 teens developing leadership skills, volunteering and raising funds to make the world a better place through our Teen Leadership Program
12 teens raising $35,451 to travel to Mexico and build a home for a family in need
30 kids and parents benefitting from 30 hours of counselling with our registered social worker, problem-solving and creating positive coping skills
ways you can help us transform young lives
ROCK YOUR LOCKS
We’re rebranding the Big Brave. We’re calling it Rock Your Locks but its the same amazing program. You can still c ut, colour or shave your lid for a kid Join us and Rock Your Locks!
DONATE
Your one-time gift will help ensure we’re here to help kids affected by cancer in these uncertain times.
BE A MONTHLY DONOR
You can be a superhero in the life of a child with cancer. Your monthly gifts will add up over time and make a lasting impact on the lives of children with cancer.
Life skills, outdoor, challenge, teamwork, collaboration, resilience, belonging, acceptance, community, leadership…
888 happy campers enjoying our year-round camp programs
358 kids developing new friendships, skills, and resilience at summer camp outreach
Community, teamwork, collaboration, compassion, friendship, healing, support, care…
383 kids and parents enjoying the spirit of Christmas at Theatre Calgary’s A Christmas Carol
24 parents bonding over a shared goal and taking home bronze at the Calgary Dragon Boat Festival
CYCLE
Join us for the 2024 Ride of Courage, July 12 to 14. A premier all-inclusive, 3-day cycling event . Cycle through the Alberta Foothills by day and recover around the campfire by night at Camp Kindle.
DO A CAN DO for KIDS
A Can Do for Kids is a fundraising initiative organized by YOU — your school, your sports team, or your company. It can be as big or as small as you’d like. You decide
275 volunteers giving 14,000+ hours, saving Kids Cancer Care $378,000+ or the equivalent of 7+ full-time positions to make our programs possible*
1 patient with terminal ASPS (rare sarcoma) being treated with CAR T Cell therapy in Calgary
20+ patients enrolling in a Canadian wide phase 1 clinical trial to test a novel CAR T Cell therapy on ASPS and other cancers
1 DIPG vaccine showing promise for 8 children with DIPG (fatal brain tumour) in an FDA-approved phase 1 clinical trial in Boston and Chicago (the vaccine is pending approval from Health Canada for Canadian children)
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