A few minor changes…
Since we now have gone through six monthly spotlights, we wanted to make everyone aware of a few changes that have occurred.
The first change that we made is in our qualifications. When we originally started out, we wanted to limit this to children up to three years old in active treatment. We became very aware early on that this was very limiting. The reason we wanted to do three and under was not only because that was what Wylie was during treatment, but that is also a somewhat left out group when it comes to care packages, discussions, and overall awareness. In discussions with a few child life specialists about this, it pretty much came down to available resources. We wanted to fix it or at least attempt to make a dent in the problem. Most of the resources out there were for school age children. This is where we noticed what about four year old children? So now we will take up to and including four years of age.
The second change, is exactly where in the treatment plan the child is. Some plans are very short with four months or even less, but others are still quite long like three years for leukemia. To try and hit the window with the little ones on the short schedule is very difficult and not to mention, the first month or two of treatment is heavily involved in just accepting and getting accustomed to what is going on. So, we will now take children up to six months post treatment as long as everything is initiated where the spotlight will occur in that six months.
That pretty much sums up all the changes. As for other items going on, we have ordered some pins designed to look like a ribbon in the shape of the heart. The background is gold for childhood cancer with the front ribbon being a different color to represent the various subtypes. We will have these available to purchase in the store for $20. $10 from every sale of a ribbon goes toward funding packages. The remainder covers costs and shipping. Every family in our spotlights will receive one for free. We also have some stickers available. These will be a permanent addition to the store. They are $6 which $5 of that goes toward the packages. Shirts will be available again next week with one design being a permanent addition to the store.
I will end on our funding goals. This year we are aiming for $7500. This will allow for 12 care packages for next year, an increase in stocking some items in the store, creation of memory boxes both to buy and for our spotlights, and of course, maintenance of everything to keep this running. Thank you for everyone that has donated over the last year to make this possible. We are continually growing and reaching out to other organizations and companies. If you have any questions or want to help, you can always reach out to us via email.