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.