Happy heavenly birthday, sweet Kate. Today, you would be celebrating turning 10 … possibly sassing your momma, definitely loving the 2021 invasion of the cicadas, and absolutely giggling that your momma is practically wearing a bee keeper suit to keep away from them. I hate that you are not here with her and your dad. I hate cancer. But I think of you daily, and think of ways to make the world better in your memory.
One of those ways is by dedicating our June Community Outreach Partner at Salon Khouri to Kate’s Cause, giving $1 from every haircut we do in June to support this amazing non-profit your parents set up. Kate’s Cause is doing great things for other kiddos battling cancer. It’s their hope and mission to find better, less toxic treatments. One of the big things they are working on now is by committing $75,000 to help fund some great research being done by Dr. Yael Mossé, MD, of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Mossé’s goal is to develop targeted drugs for MYCN, a currently “undruggable” driver of pediatric cancer, within the next four years. This amazing doctor brought together a team of complementary researchers, each with unique experience to attack MYCN with innovative new technologies. Together, they will prove that the drugs they’re developing are effective against most lethal pediatric cancers, and they will be ready to launch a clinical trial shortly after the grant is completed in Spring 2025!
We encourage you to visit Kate’s Cause to learn what you can do to help beat childhood cancer. We also ask that you perform Random Acts of Kateness to honor Kate during June (#RandomActsOfKateness). Find a neighbor who needs assistance going to the store or who needs help with their yard work; pay for the car behind you when you go through the drive-thru; offer to pay for a fellow shoppers’ items next time you go to a store.