Thoughts for 2011

Thoughts for 2011

What a difference a year makes.

First and foremost we would love to thank you all for your support, for your friendship and for the wonderful kindnesses you have shown our oncology families.

We have had some very sad days this last year, losing some beautiful children to the ravages of Childhood Cancer. Those children will never be forgotten by their families or by us. In their memory Be Child Cancer Aware will be launching “Heavens Playground where Astral Angels play” Families will be able to dedicate a star to their precious Angel and this will be launched in early 2011. Initially, this will be available to any UK family who has lost their precious child to cancer and they will be able to print out a certificate with the star’s location and a map of the actual co ordinates. We hope to expand this further afield later in the year after we work out some logistics.

All Childhood Cancers need treating; All Childhood Cancers take young lives; All Childhood Cancers shatter families. 3 out of 10 children who get this awful disease known as Childhood Cancer will lose their life to it. Be Child Cancer Aware has received Family Stories from families affected by every type of Childhood Cancer. Together, we work towards a common goal of raising awareness and endeavour to support as many like minded charities as we can.

Our mission is to continue to raise awareness of “All” Childhood Cancers and, with your support, one of our continued goals for 2011, is to empower the rest of the UK with the knowledge that could save a child’s life. Be Child Cancer Aware has taken the initial steps to empower every parent with the gift of knowledge regarding the signs and symptoms of Childhood Cancer by issuing 1.1 million Signs and Symptoms Awareness Cards to over 6,000 schools.

This takes us onto our next announcement. In memory of another child lost to the ravages of Childhood Cancer, Be Child Cancer Aware has received a wonderful donation in memory of Harris Ross. This donation made by Harris’ parents, Allan & Tanya will enable us to send our second mailing of Awareness Cards which are being posted mid-January to every state run school in Scotland. We are extremely grateful to Allan and Tanya for their kind and thoughtful donation, which has enabled us to order our second 1 million Awareness Cards ahead of our original schedule.

Take comfort in the fact that 100% of your funds goes directly towards making a difference and raising awareness of all Childhood Cancers. We don’t receive a wage or sit in comfortable offices. We don’t drive expensive cars or claim expense fees. Be Child Cancer Aware was founded by parents of children who have fought, are fighting or have lost their battle with Childhood Cancer. We know the life that surrounds Childhood Oncology and who could be more passionate about changing the mindset than those living this life.

To our supporters we say “Hold your head high and smile”, as without your support, we would not be in the position that we are today. We believe that the work we are doing is vital towards saving the lives of children in the future. We don’t raise tens of millions of pounds per year in donations, but we are at the start of something extraordinary in the Childhood Cancer Awareness scene. Our awareness campaign is not only effective but highly measureable.

This last year has seen us reach out to 1.1 million school families with our initial awareness cards, next year we intend to reach the remaining 10+ million.

2011 is going to be the year that together, with your continued support, Be Child Cancer Aware will reach every family of a school aged pupil in the UK. We have many more plans for 2011, some of which are near completion and some are still in negotiations and we will continue to update via our website, facebook and twitter pages.

Expect bigger things from this little charity in 2011. Amongst other goals, we will continue to make Childhood Cancer information available in, Doctors Surgeries, Health Centres, Schools, A&E Departments, Libraries, Swimming pools and other council run centres.

We will need your help. We need to grow bigger, we need more supporters and we need more funds. To that point, we are going to release a video early in January outlining how you can help us achieve our goals and mission. In the meantime, please share our Facebook page on your profile, and invite your family, friends, and work colleagues to join in raising awareness of the existence of Be Child Cancer Aware on Facebook.

Here’s wishing us all a healthy and happy 2011. Please spare a thought for those families whose children are going through treatment during this year and join with us in wishing them positive outcomes this year.

Our thoughts, as always, remain with the families who have lost their precious children to this cruel disease…..Bless you all.