Bexley students and community members have raised over $15,000 this year for Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS), a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending blood and bone cancers, as part of the organization’s Student Visionaries of the Year program.
Leukemia and lymphoma are two forms of cancer that start in the blood and lymphatic system before potentially spreading to other organs in the body, according to the LLS website.
LLS offers a program called the Student Visionaries of the Year, and sophomores Avi Bernstein, Hadley Langolf and Charlotte Holzhall co-captained the high school’s team.
“We chose LLS because a representative of their Student Visionaries of the Year program came and spoke to a Key Club meeting that we were attending,” Holzhall said. “This seemed like an amazing opportunity, so we decided to participate.”
The goal of the seven-week charity campaign is to compete against other central Ohio high schools to see who can raise the most money, Langolf said.
They raised over $15,000, with over $1,000 coming from their bake sale in front of the Bexley Public Library Sunday, Feb. 3 and a 50/50 raffle during the swim team’s senior night Saturday, Feb. 2.
Langolf said her passion to aid leukemia victims began in 2020 by raising money with other students and was strengthened when her grandfather was later diagnosed with leukemia.
“My grandpa was diagnosed a couple years ago with a very rare form of leukemia that there was no cure for,” she explained. “He entered a clinical study and this December was announced cancer-free.”
The Bexley Student Visionaries of the Year campaign lasted from Jan. 17 to March 8, Langolf said.
Bexley resident Michelle Levin, a 15-year volunteer for LLS and other charitable campaigns, said her best friend was diagnosed with lymphoma in 2009.
“I immediately jumped on the bandwagon of support,” she added. “I went to meetings, joined teams and heard speakers, doctors, patients, families, survivors and fighters, deserving to beat this stupid disease we call cancer.”
The local chapter of LLS hosts fundraisers throughout the year with campaigns lasting two to three months each.
Levin added she hosts Drag Queen Bingo fundraisers, once raising as much as $5,000 in one evening.
“They are exceptionally fun, eye-catching entertainment events that bring out the festive supporters,” Levin said.
Levin said she isn’t done helping out with LLS because she feels passionate about the organization.
“Right now I’m advising the leadership team on mentoring new candidates arriving for their first campaigns and giving them a road map to follow as well,” Levin said.
Levin’s mentorship is helping new campaigns such as the Student Visionaries of the Year get started with fundraisers, Holzhall said.
Holzhall added that participating in fundraisers is a great way to get involved in the organization.
“Donations are very important for what they do, and everything you do to donate goes towards helping those impacted by blood cancer and helping to find a cure,” Holzhall said. “It’s a really awesome way to make a difference.”
