On today's episode, I decided to do things a little differently. As we kick off the month of September, we also mark the start of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, so I brought on a very special guest. Erik Rees is the Head of the Jessie Rees Foundation, better known as Jessie's Dad. I wanted to bring on Erik to tell his daughter's story. Jessie was an 11-year-old diagnosed with DIPG, a rare and aggressive form of childhood cancer. During her fight, rather than making it all about her, Jessie wanted to help the other kids fighting cancer and brighten their days to make it better. It started with a simple question: How can we help them? She created Jessie's Joy Jars. These jars are filled to the top with toys, games, and other things to bring joy to kids confined to their hospital rooms to "cure a bad day." Jessie's spirt to never ever give up, or NEGU, as she would say has been able to reach over 300,000 kids battling cancer in all 50 states and over 40 countries. You'll hear all about Jessie, her fight, and what the foundation is up to these days.
To Learn More about the Jessie Rees Foundation and the challenges for September, please go to negu.org/challenge
Follow @TeamNEGU on all social media!
**Fact Check** In the episode I said that every 46 minutes a child is told that they have cancer, but the real statistic is every day, 46 kids are told they have cancer. Apologies for the misstep.
