Chagrin Falls High School senior Cameron Owen is fundraising in hopes of raising money for patients and families who are affected by blood cancers.
This fundraising effort is called the “Student of the Year” campaign and was created by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). This program is a seven-week philanthropic program in which students from local high schools foster professional skills such as entrepreneurship, project management, and marketing to raise funds for the LLS.
The LLS organization is the world’s largest nonprofit fighting blood cancer. They have developed advanced cancer therapies that can now treat people with rare autoimmune diseases as well as other types of cancer.
The title of “Student of the Year” is awarded to the participant in each community who raises the most money during the length of the fundraising campaign. The fundraising efforts are done in honor of a young, local blood cancer patient. Owen’s honorable patient is CFHS junior, Julius Lelonis.
Julius was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) during his freshman year at CFHS. Cameron has known Julius since they were in grade school and said that when he found out about Julius’ condition, “I was very eager to help in any and every way that I could. This is why I am very grateful for the opportunity to make a difference by fundraising in order to help kids like Julius who are diagnosed with cancer at a very young age,” said Owen.The “Student of the Year” competition is already underway and will continue until March 13. Owen’s team of fundraisers called, “Cam’s Crew” has a fundraising goal of $50,000 by the end of the program. The benefits of participating are not only the ability for students to improve their professional skills and create awareness about cancer research funding, but to have an impact on the fight against cancer. To donate to Owen’s campaign, visit https://events.lls.org/noh/nohSOY20/cowen2.
