Light the Night Superheros, Part 1

First, you wonderful people have helped us raise more than $2,300 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, as part of our virtual Light the Night Team through Foundation Beyond Belief. This means we are less than $200 away from Anne Sauer making a custom warm drink for us!

We are still shooting for at least $10,001, if not the $20,000 Todd Stiefel has dared us to raise. To donate or join our team, click here. You can see all the incentives we’re offering listed on our team page, but don’t forget to check out the additional incentives on our team members’ personal fundraising pages, such as Sarah’s and Rebecca’s.

Remember, every dollar you donate is actually two dollars for the cause, thanks to matching donations from the Stiefel Freethought Foundation.

Second, I owe you 10 superhero likenesses of kids with cancer, in treatment or remission. I apologize for the delay. I’m still reaching out to hospitals to find willing parents and kids, and the staff has understandably more important priorities, so bear with me! If you know of any kids who might like this, please contact me (skepchickevents [at] gmail.com).

I have only two for you today, but they are two amazing, courageous little girls. Meet Abby and Mak!

Abby was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow, at age 8, in September 2012. She underwent 4 rounds of chemo until getting the all clear in March, but this September, she relapsed and now has to go through more chemo and a bone marrow transplant.

You can find out more about her situation at her Caring Bridge page. Note that donations to Caring Bridge do not go to Abby’s family. Donations to help with her medical care should go through Wells Fargo Bank for the Abigail Olson Donation Trust.

Also, if you are between ages 18 and 44, please consider joining the bone marrow registry. Kids like Abby rely on having an extensive list of people willing to donate their bone marrow, because finding a match can be difficult.

Abby is an active 9-year-old girl who LOVES animals. Her superpower is the ability to call animals to her aid and to borrow their abilities whenever she needs them.

Makayla is 7 years old, and she loves dogs, purple, and sparkly things. Her superpower is mastery over water, both the ability to breathe underwater and not get wet and to create water fireballs (yes, this is totally possible, shut up). Mak’s story has a happy ending. She is currently cancer free!

Both superhero drawings were created with the coolest tool on the Internet for those of us who can’t even draw a straight line, Hero Machine.