A New Year of Hope Foundation

We started this organization after our 11-month-old baby, Lukas MacDonnell, was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma, a deadly form of pediatric cancer. He has since been through 15 surgeries, 13 rounds of high intensity radiation, 8 rounds of chemotherapy, 12 rounds of imunotherapy, numerous blood transfusions, and more arm and finger pokes than we can count. He has also endured numerous MRI, CT and other specialized scans.

Unfortunately, Lukas is not alone in this battle. Approximately 400 infants and children are diagnosed with Neuroblastoma each year. A staggering 70% of these cases are already in advanced stages at the time of diagnosis. There is NO CURE!

Cook Children’s Hospital in Ft. Worth, TX is almost finished building a new wing of the hospital which will house a brand new cancer floor with specialized clinic and Oncology floor and MIBG room, along with a growing Neuroblastoma Program. This fully staffed center will offer specialized clinical research, family support through a parent network, family education and public awareness, and finally, a specialized palliative care program. Our hope is for this foundation to be a driving force in the realization of the Neuroblastoma Program.

Along with the Neuroblastoma Program, we are able to offer family support through a local group of parents that have had children that battled Neuroblastoma. The L.O.V.E Club was started 2005 in honor of four brave little girls that were diagnosed with Neuroblastoma only weeks apart, Lauren Jones, Olivia Grass, Victoriana Soritau and Elesha Debenport. Monthly support meetings are held to bring families together to offer encouragement and support, to discuss family matters, treatment options, and fundraisers to bring awareness and funds for research. The L.O.V.E. Club bands together to educate, support and uplift families in the middle of their own battle with Neuroblastoma. Of the four founding families, Lauren and Elesha have passed away, but the families have continued their work and the L.O.V.E. Club has grown to over 25 families represented, and is still growing.

I do this for Lukas and for all the other children we'we met along the way, that fight every day to beat the beast called Neuroblastoma. My mission is simple, to try and make this road a little easier for those that will unfortunately follow after us. I want to raise as much awareness and in turn raise as much money as we can to help fund research that will one day lead to a cure for NB!

The L.O.V.E. Club is a support group for Neuroblastoma families in the greater Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Their mission is to provide information, awareness, and support for children and adolescents with Neuroblastoma and their families, to advocate for their needs, and to support research so every child has a chance to survive and lead a long and healthy life.

A New Year of Hope Foundation has allowed me to serve on the Board to help accomplish the mission of our support group for Neuroblastoma families by connecting our large area of influence with families to the communities that they live in.

I am the mother of four children, one of whom battled Neuroblastoma for two and a half years. Through my daughter's battle and subsequent loss, I saw the need for supporting families through this trial. I want to help give hope to those whose lives have been forever altered by this deadly disease.