6 minute read
Impact and Give Back
Strength
BY LIESEL SCHMIDT
Cancer is a diagnosis that’s devastating at any age, but even more so when that diagnosis is being given to a child. Childhood is a time that should be filled with hope and joy, with laughter and innocence, with learning and exploring and discovering a world that is limitless with possibility. It’s a time when the future is boundless, and an entire lifetime has yet to be lived. But those five little letters can have a huge impact on everything, turning what childhood should be into a dream that might not be within reach. For the family of Caroline Berry, a diagnosis of cancer when Caroline was 14 years old cruelly shattered their hopes of a normal youth—though the brave teen met her battle with grace and incredible strength. “When our sweet Caroline was diagnosed with cancer in January of 2017, she quickly decided that she wanted her mantra to be BERRY STRONG, and her inspiration during her fight was Matthew 17:20, that faith can move mountains,” recalls her mother, Jennifer.
Sadly, Caroline’s fight ended on Thanksgiving in 2018. But her memory and her mantra became the inspiration for the Berry Strong Foundation, founded in March of 2019 by her mother and her father, Gordon. “During Caroline’s fight with cancer, she became an ambassador for childhood cancer, raising awareness and research funding so that no child would ever have to endure the same battle,” Jennifer explains. “Our sweet Caroline was the epitome of grace, courage, and strength, and she never gave up. It was her wish for her family and friends to continue what she started. She is the inspirations for all that we do, and I am so proud to be her mother.”
The Berry Strong Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit that raises awareness and funds that go directly towards research dedicated to finding a cure for childhood cancers. To honor Caroline’s life and continue the fight for other children, the Berry Strong Foundation is dedicated to finding safer, smarter, and more effective treatments for childhood cancer through the funding of innovative pediatric cancer research in addition to supporting local children and families battling cancer.
Over the past three years, the Berry Strong Foundation has made an incredible impact on the community—and honored Caroline’s memory in each child they have touched. “We are so grateful to help our local childhood cancer families and the children being treated at USA Children’s and Women’s Hospital in Mobile,” says Jennifer. “We work directly with hospital social workers and child life specialists to identify the needs of those who are struggling. We also assist families with mortgage and rent payments as well as utility bills and provide families with gift cards for gas, meals, groceries, and household items.
“Currently there are over 30 childhood cancer families in active treatment at USA Children’s and Women’s Hospital,” Jennifer continues. “During the year, we have many special projects that directly impact these families. Every June, to honor Caroline on her birthday, we host an arts and crafts drive called ‘Crafts for a Cure’ that directly benefits the Child Life department at the hospital. This project supplies over six months of art supplies. The role of a Child Life Specialist is to help normalize the environment for pediatric cancer patients while they are hospitalized. Most of the time, this is done through distraction therapy and engaging the child in activities like painting, drawing, coloring, and games—or whatever else a patient enjoys. Our sweet Caroline spent a lot of her time drawing and doing calligraphy when she was in the hospital. That is why this project is so very special and why we do it every year to honor our sweet girl on her birthday.”
September is an important month for the foundation, as well, and efforts ramp up significantly. “We do many things in the community, and awareness is something that is very near and dear to our hearts. Gold is the color for childhood cancer awareness because gold is a precious metal and is therefore the perfect color to reflect the most precious thing in our lives—our children,” says Jennifer. “September is childhood cancer awareness month, and it was Caroline’s dream to #turnthetowngold every September. We work closely with local businesses, community leaders and schools to honor our sweet Caroline’s wish. It is our sincere hope that our work during September will bring awareness to childhood cancers and highlight the need for more funding and research. Caroline’s mission truly lives on through our tireless work
Another annual project for the Berry Strong Foundation happens at Thanksgiving. “We lost our sweet Caroline on Thanksgiving morning,” Jennifer explains. “As the first anniversary of her death approached, I was desperately searching for a meaningful way to get through the holiday. That’s how this project began. During Caroline’s fight, we spent multiple holidays and Thanksgivings in the hospital PICU. Most of the time, we were isolated and didn’t have the traditional meal. Because of the impact of the kindness our family received during Caroline’s fight, every Thanksgiving, we provide goody bags and adorable themed cookie boxes for the children and gift cards for Thanksgiving groceries for the families being treated in the USS Hope clinic the week of Thanksgiving. We also treat a very special inpatient and outpatient family to a fully catered meal on Thanksgiving Day.”
Clearly, the Berry Strong Foundation is dedicated not only to fighting the fight, but also to offering care and support. Over the lifetime of the organization, their sphere of work has widened even more than just the local community. “We have been able to generously support our first childhood cancer research grant through the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, Benjamin Stanton Ph.D., and The Research Institute at Nationwide affiliated with Nationwide Children’s Hospital,” Jennifer notes. “We also work with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation and the Alliance for Childhood Cancer on important childhood cancer issues currently before Congress. Childhood cancer is not always a topic that people want to discuss. It’s sad and depressing and easier to pretend it doesn’t exist. But we ensure that these families have a voice and are not forgotten.” In doing so, children like Caroline Berry will never be forgotten.
Christopher J. Bosarge, M.D.
Board Certified in Diagnostic & Interventional Radiology
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