Today: Mar 28, 2024

Students ‘swing’ against cancer to raise awareness

Abby Epstein News Editor

Take a swing against cancer and score a hole-in-one to raise money for pediatric cancer.

“So for every hole-in-one a student scores there will be a donor that will donate a certain amount of money, we are hoping for it to be $4 per hole because child cancer gets 4% of the National Institute funding,” said Regina Misercola vice president of the pediatric cancer awareness organization.

The Pediatric Cancer Awareness Organization hosted a mini golf event where for every hole-in-one a student scored, that money will be donated to the LIVFREE foundation.

“I started working with the LIVFREE foundation when I was a freshman in high school and they’re having a mini golf tournament on Saturday. So, this is our mini, mini golf version of that event,” said Misercola.

Many students lined up, aimed, and swung in hope of making a hole-in-one., which ended in some success The majority of participants saw miniature golf as a fun event.

“People like fun little competitive games that’s how we work as humans. It’s one way to bring awareness in a fun light to bring people together,” said psychology major Brian Petrucci, senior.

Communication major Chris Wilson, a junior at first had trouble making a hole-in-one, but after a few attempts, he was able to score and bring back his game.

“That was a lot harder than I thought, there are 10 holes and I’m literally two feet away so I should be able to hit it,” said Wilson.

Along with mini golf being a fun activity, people also realized that it was a good way to raise money for cancer.

“I appreciate anytime someone is trying to promote awareness of any cause and I think visibility is one of the most important aspects of all things,” said Petrucci. “Raise awareness that’s what we need to do.”

Taylor Lubin, a member of the pediatric cancer awareness organization, helped assist with the event because of the light heartening appeal.

“It sounded like a lot of fun and it’s for a really good cause, so I thought why not. This weekend I will be volunteering at the event in Shelton, so I thought this was a good opportunity to meet new people,” said Lubin.

According to the LIVFREE website, the foundation came about when Daniel and Katrina Vieira’s daughter Lauren, was diagnosed with Leukemia. The mission of LIVFREE is to “provide smiles to pediatric cancer patients and their family by offering an unforgettable experience.”

“They sponsor trips for families, they have sent families to Disney or to baseball games and other sporting events,” said Misercola.

The Vieira’s have a landscaping business in Shelton and did landscaping for The Rinks at the sports center in Shelton. Which ended in creating a close relationship with the people who run the rink. This was the beginning of the miniature golf fundraiser.

It was a good partnership, you can bring kids and adults and have a fun experience while raising money for other kids to have fun experiences,” said Misercola.

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