Description
It all started in a driveway. Nothing pulls a community together more than when a child gets sick. William Olson is that child, and when his brain cancer returned after an 18-month remission, more than 100 friends gathered in the Olson's driveway to pray. A group of moms continued to meet in the Olson's driveway every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning to keep praying for the Olson's as they faced an incredibly tough battle.
One evening, Dean Crowe, one of the Prayer Circle moms, and her husband, Reid, went to visit William in the hospital. At the time of the visit, William had zero white blood cells and was very sick. The couple started asking questions about the treatments available for William. They were surprised at how limited his options were.
Dean asked William's mom, Nancy, a simple question, "What can I do to help?"
Nancy knew Dean was serious and asked for her help in redirecting funds to support childhood cancer research. Nancy shared, "All that parents with children suffering from cancer really want is better treatment with fewer long-term debilitating side-effects and cures. The only way this will happen is if childhood cancer research is better funded." She further explained that childhood cancer is very different than adult cancer: Children and adults get different kinds of cancers, and therefore, they have to be researched and treated differently.
When Dean set out to help Nancy, she discovered that funding simply wasn't available to redirect for childhood cancer research. However, she knew that she and others desperately wanted to help. The pediatric cancer community at any given time is 10 million strong, and Dean knew that this community would rally to help raise money for research.
So, after much prayer, the Rally Foundation was born. Rally Foundation, a 501(c)(3), has one mission: to raise money for childhood cancer research through grassroots initiatives.
And just so you know, William graduated from high school with a 4.0 and is now an honor student at Auburn University!
