Volunteer blogs

Tresa is one of our new JoyRx Mentors this year as part of the JoyRx Mentorship program, where mentors help seriously ill kids elevate their mood through laughter and play. This trusted companionship and kindship is a cornerstone of the program — and that sense of community is an important value for Tresa as an individual.

We are thrilled to announce that JoyRx Mentorship has supported over 100 matches as we reach the end of our 2023-2024 fiscal year. Launched in 1999, JoyRx Mentorship is a crucial program for JoyRx, fostering companionship and friendship for children experiencing treatment and hospitalizations.

It’s Volunteer Appreciation Month! Founded to celebrate current volunteers and encourage others to join volunteering efforts, this month of gratitude highlights the importance of giving back to the community.

As a PMHE survivor, fifteen-year-old Aaron knows the transformative power of music during difficult moments. That’s why he’s dedicated to giving back to kids like him through the gift of song.

For JoyRx Music Volunteer Elaina, giving back to the community is a meaningful way to bring Joy to others. At just fifteen years old, Elaina is committed to creating what she calls “a positive domino effect” through her love of music, sharing personalized songs she writes for the children we serve.

April is Volunteer Appreciation Month and we at JoyRx, the mission delivery of Children’s Cancer Association, are so grateful for our volunteers. We wouldn’t be able to do our healing without the dedication and kindness of our amazing volunteers.

Our team at the Children’s Cancer Association (CCA) continues to grow as we challenge ourselves to provide joy to more kids and teens facing serious illness each year. Recently, we hired six new staff members and welcomed three new interns. Of those six staff members, two are previous CCA volunteers. We’re so excited to have them on the team and know that their expertise will only help to strengthen our mission. Today, we would like to introduce you to Drew Peterson, Database Support.

Smiles, laughter, music, nature, kindness, and helping people, these are the things that bring Suzie Moll joy. A native Oregonian with a passion for giving back, Suzie has been involved with non-profits in her community since her 20s. She is an avid supporter of organizations bettering the lives of children and teens, so it’s no surprise that she took an interest in our JoyRx programs.

It’s said William Shakespeare first penned the phrase “I will wear my heart upon my sleeve,” but Eileen Shattuck took it to the next level when she tattooed the Children’s Cancer Association’s heart logo on her arm. We are incredibly grateful to Eileen for her support of CCA and inspired to know someone who has so much love and dedication for a cause that we all hold close to our hearts.

The Children’s Cancer Association’s (CCA) “One Day. One Friend.” is an annual, online, peer-to-peer fundraiser that helps fund matches for our award-winning Chemo Pal Mentor Program. This program provides children and teens with a caring, trusted, adult friend to look forward to during treatments, and someone in their corner when they need it most. This year, 22 Chemo Pal Mentors and CCA volunteers shared personal stories about their experiences with CCA and asked their friends and family to support a cause they care deeply about. Together, they raised over $20,000!

Since becoming a volunteer in 2015, Matt Berning has played an amazing 112 hours of music for kids and staff at Randall Children’s Hospital.

Our staff at the CCA office is always happy to see volunteers walk through the door, but one volunteer, in particular, has befriended just about everyone on the team, attended numerous events and embodies the true spirit of joy in all that he does. Rusty Nelson has been volunteering with the Children’s Cancer Association for the last six years and according to him, there’s no end in sight. We sat down with Rusty to ask him about his time with CCA.