Welcome to My Personal Page
When I first started swimming with SAA, it was because my swim team, Keck Crew SF, was doing it. I know I wanted to keep doing it for years to come. The spirit, passion and pride of everyone who contributes to the event is palpable. I very quickly developed those characteristics myself. Over the last couple of years, I’ve started to meet people who are cancer survivors or struggle with it and I can see the effects that it has. It can destroy people’s lives. There’s the treatments, the cost, the uncertainty, how your family and friends will handle it, ect. My math teacher, a breast cancer survivor, says when she was diagnosed all she thought about was how glad she was that it wasn't her kids. The San Francisco branch, the one I will be swimming for, is donating to the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, Oakland and UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, San Francisco. Kids my age and younger, will have all the potential, freedom and everyday problems that I and many of my friends have to deal with this terrible disease. According to the American Childhood Cancer Association (https://www.acco.org/blog/6-facts-about-childhood-cancer/)
42 families a day discover their child’s diagnosis
The average age of a child’s diagnosis is about 8 years old
On average, the early stages are difficult to diagnose
Cancer is the #1 cause of death by disease for children in America
Life has barely started and it’s getting ruined by something they never chose to have. The treatments are brutal and they don’t always have any guarantees. The joy of childhood is getting alive until there’s nothing left. The fear of death lingers over everyone in their lives, especially themselves, but we can lessen that risk. While there are many things to fear in swimming, ranging from being washed out to sea, drowning, finding an unknown monster, getting run over by a boat, fighting sharks and seals, nothing compares to the terror of cancer. It can come for anyone at any stage.
Kids shouldn’t have to deal with this and you can make a difference. By making a donation to me, of any amount, your money goes to the hospitals mentioned before and is used for researching and helping finding cures/treatment to patients as well as treating said patients. Swim Across America has already donated $100 million in 37 years to 11 named causes. So many children are able to conquer this disease with your help. So please, pitch in what you can and thank you for reading.
