*Check out The B+ Foundation video on YouTube!*

 Click here to view video. Be sure to turn the sound on! Tell us what you think!

 

    THANK YOU FOR YOUR VOTES AND SUPPORT!

Thanks to you -- and all the friends and family you encouraged to vote for us -- The B+ Foundation received over 5,000 votes in Round 2 of the Chase Community Giving Contest.  Although that wasn't enough to win the $1Million, we were the top childhood cancer group.  AND the contest judges, including Eva Longoria (Desperate Housewives), David Robinson (NBA), and Kim Davis (Chase) were so moved by our Foundation that they awarded us an additional $37,000!  Combined with our Round 1 award, the Chase/Facebook contest has awarded us $62,000!  Plus, we've increased awareness for the foundation and childhood cancer nationwide. Thank you all!

      Do you know how your donation is spent?

Ali asked the American Cancer Society how much money they dedicate to pediatric cancer research and was quite disappointed by their response: “as of February 2009, the Society had 31 grants in effect totaling $14.4 million related to childhood cancer, with approximately 3% of all research expenditures as childhood cancer grants.” Really? Only 3%?

As Bob Piniewski of People Against Childhood Cancer points out:  Imagine you participate in a Relay-For-Life and you raise $2,000.  $200 (10%) goes to admin expenses.  Fundraising expenses take another 22%, or $440.  Of the remaining $1,360, only 2.96%, or $59 of the original $2,000 you raised will be directly targeted towards childhood cancer.

So, the American Cancer Society AND the National Cancer Institute each allocate only 3% of their funding to pediatric cancer research.  That's not good enough...

            

B+ HEROES PAIRED WITH TEAMS AT TOURNAMENT

Again this year, we paired eight B+ Heroes (children with cancer) with teams participating in the nationally recognized girls high school basketball tournament, The Diamond State Classic, played each December in Wilmington, DE. 

 

The B+ Heroes enjoy meeting their teams from as far away as Washington state.  The players get a chance to meet kids that will forever change their perspective on life.  

 

Joe presented The Andrew McDonough B+ Award to the player who "demonstrates positive attitude, has fun, and inspires her teammates on and off the court."  

                          Photos   |   Article  |   Bud's Photos

 

PHILLIES & EAGLES REWARD THE B+ FOUNDATION

The Philadelphia Phillies Charities, Inc. have selected The Andrew McDonough B+ Foundation as one of the recipients of their 2009 community grants.  YOUR Foundation will receive $5,000 from the Phillies! 

    

Representing The B+ Foundation, Chris and Ali have been selected as a runner-up for the Eagles Community Quarterback Award, out of over 100 nominees.  The Eagles will donate $11,000 to The B+ Foundation.

             Phillies Article  |  Eagles Article  |  Photos

 

   HOLIDAY PARTY KICKS OFF
    UDANCE WITH B+ HEROES

16 B+ Heroes and siblings have been "adopted" by University of Delaware fraternities and sororities.  Everyone kicked off the UDANCE season with a holiday party.  Mark your calendars for March 21st, 2010, for the 4th Annual University of Delaware UDANCE marathon.  Help support the students as they try to raise $100,000 for The B+ Foundation and Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric Aids Foundation.  Holiday party photos. DONATE ONLINE HERE.

 

         ALI SENDS LETTERS TO OUR SENATORS

Like many of us, Ali was appalled to find out that even though Congress passed the Carolyn Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act in 2008, it has yet to be funded!   There is currently $10 million (a pittance) included in a bill, but it doesn't look like it will get passed.  So Ali did what we all should do, she wrote her senators a letter asking them to support the bill, support the Act, and support efforts for a world without pediatric cancer. Her letter is a must-read.  Feel free to borrow liberally and write your Senators and Representatives today -- there's a link at the bottom of this page to find addresses. Or call them -- here's a link to find names and phone numbers.   We're proud of you, Ali!

 

  ALI RECEIVES ANDREW'S BEADS OF COURAGE

He earned them and she wanted him to have them. That's why Ali asked AI DuPont Hospital for Children to gather together Andrew's Beads of Courage. 

Beads of Courage is a nationwide program  for oncology patients that gives them a bead for each day of chemo, each day inpatient, each transfusion, infusion, surgical procedure, line placement, day of dialysis, etc.  The program started at AI in 2008 with the help of Brooke Saunders’s generous donation in honor of her friend Jack and our Andrew.  Andrew's “necklace” is about 30 feet long, more beads than any other patient.  Ali says, "I’m so happy to have this concrete proof of Andrew’s bravery.  I knew and still know how brave he is and his amazing strength, but for others to see this, I think they’ll better understand just how amazing he is." 

 

    3rd Annual B+ Golf Outing, Dinner and Auction

120 golfers and 70 dinner guests joined us October 12th for the 3rd Annual B+ Golf Outing, Dinner and Auction.  With their participation and the support of friends, sponsors, and auction item donors, we raised almost $50,000 to fight pediatric cancers and support our families in need.  Thank you to everyone who helped make it a successful event.        Details  | Photos

 

            Gov. Markell Visits NCCCR with B+

In honor of September being Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, we invited Delaware's Governor Markell to tour the Nemours Center for Childhood Cancer
Research. The Governor learned why we think NCCCR is on the cutting edge of research into new drugs specifically
designed for children, and why The B+ Foundation recently awarded NCCCR our first childhood cancer research grant for $250,000.  This grant will enable the purchase of a High-Throughput
Screening device that reduces the time to screen potential new drugs from
years -- to days.     Details | Video      

 

B+ 5K RAISES $80,000!
Over 1700 friends, family, B+ Heroes and their teams, and seriously good runners joined us June 18th!  The rain couldn't dampen the enthusiasm and Andrew cleared the skies just in time for the start
of the race.  THANK YOU to everyone who braved the weather and all those who supported us from afar.  You helped us raise $80,000!  That's twice what we raised last year.  You're amazing! Team
stats and donation pages are still available.  INDIVIDUAL TIMES through 60 minutes are available now.  If you didn't get a shirt, contact us to pick it up.  Photos |  Details | Bud Keegan Images

 

B+ Supporters are so creative! See how others are spreading the B+ Movement and helping to raise awareness and funds.
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  WEAR YOUR B+ GEAR &

  START A CONVERSATION

 

NEW B+ HATS and LANYARDS, plus:

• Hoodies
• T-shirts
• Performance T-shirts
• Wristbands
• Window Stickers
• Sterling Silver Jewelry
  
  

Check out photos and sizes of all the B+ Gear and order online.

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         AWARDS GIVEN IN ANDREW'S HONOR

• Congratulations to the U14 Boys YMS (Yardley Makefield, PA) Soccer Team who won the FCDelco Players Cup Tournament and were awarded the Andrew McDonough Trophy.  If you ever want to see it, it resides at the USTC sports complex in Downingtown, PA.  Pictures here.
  
  
• Congratulations to Emily Lodge of the U14 Chantilly (VA) Hotspurs soccer team who received the Andrew McDonough B+ Award given annually at the prestigious Jefferson Cup Soccer Tournament in Richmond.   Coincidentally, Emily runs a soccer camp to raise money for The Little Sisters of the Poor in Richmond.
  

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                                   LESSONS FROM THE INSIDE:

One Family's Observations of Life in the Hospital

A must-read excerpt from Joe's Journal that has changed the way many hospital personnel now treat families and patients.

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Do Good: "Pay it Forward" with B+ Cards

We're asking you to perform acts of kindness in honor of Andrew, and when you do, hand out B+ cards and tell us about it. Bet it makes you feel good to do good...
Share your B+ stories in our Guestbook. Contact us and we'll send you some B+ cards.  We also send B+ cards with every order of B+ Gear.

                 

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Bench Plaque to Honor Andrew on Boardwalk in OCNJ!

Ocean City, New Jersey, is a fun, relaxing, family beach town that we enjoy visiting as a family.  We were pleased to be able to put a plaque in Andrew's honor on the Boardwalk at 12th Street.  It sits right in front of Congo Falls Mini-Golf, a favorite destination of Andrew's.  Two seconds after this photo was taken, 3 women stopped to read the plaque and we had the opportunity to spread the B+ message!
Next time you're in OCNJ, visit the bench and send us a photo in your B+ Gear.  Check out the B+ Sightings of friends visiting Andrew's bench.

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KIDS HELPING KIDS FIGHT CANCER 

The B+ Foundation gets help in many creative ways.  Not only do these events raise money to help us further our mission, but they dramatically increase awareness of the B+ Movement.  Check out a few of the more recent ways that kids (and adults) are helping kids fight cancer.  Be inspired!

KIDS

• The Bevelheimer girls of Woodbury, NJ, made their Halloween Party into a Penny Carnival to benefit B+.  Thanks to Tricia, Elese and Georgia and their teammates and friends.
• 6-year-old David Pic organized a Family Cards & Game Night at his school in Hockessin, DE.  This is in memory of Jack Langseder and benefitted The B+ Foundation.  Only 6 years old and he's got the B+ spirit!
• The 4H group Flock of Friends distributed  400 B+ Day flyers and sold B+ Gear raising money and awareness around Wilmington, DE.
• Tommy Higley asked his friends to give donations to the B+ Foundation instead of gifts for his 12th birthday to honor his friend Andrew.
• Darley Road Elementary students wrote and illustrated books, which they sold to raise funds for the B+ Foundation!
• Antonio DiCello, and his mom Nicole, delivered 126 postcards to AIDuPont Hospital.  The postcards were designed by kids during Chase's Bring Your Children to Work day, and delivered in honor of Andrew.
• Antonio and his 2nd Grade class delivered over 3,000 soda can tabs to Ronald McDonald House "for Andrew!"
• Maggie Anderson, our B+ Hero Molly's sister, raised money for the B+ Foundation and presented us with heavy jar full.
• Students in the St. Mary Magdalen (Andrew's school) National Junior Honor Society organized a 3v3 Basketball Tournament for K-12.  We were honored to attend the ceremony that presented a check to the Ronald McDonald House establishing a room in honor of Andrew and fellow students Alex Kerr and Emmi O'Toole.  Pictures here.
• Maura, Allie and Angie were "Andrew's Angels" at the SMM 3v3 Bball tournament and wore their decorated B+ Gear! Picture here.
• Many kids are telling us that they wear their wristbands and B+ T-shirts when they need a little extra strength -- during an audition, for a test, when they're feeling sad.  Andrew gives them strength.
• Ryan Murphy and the 5th Graders at North Star Elementary in Hockessin, DE, have taken the B+ spirit to heart by doing good deeds and raising funds for the B+ Foundation.  They invited Joe to kick off their efforts and sent him a thank you card signed by each of them.
• Madison, a 5th Grader from North Star Elementary, and her family held a garage sale with the proceeds benefiting the B+ Foundation.
• Brendan Warrington celebrated his 12th birthday recently and asked his friends to bring donations to the B+ Foundation instead of gifts.  Thanks for being so unselfish, Brendan.
• Shayna Tiller and her friends baked treats and held a bake sale to raise money to help B+ families in need.
• Ryan Murphy and Mary and Emily Aleixo set up separate lemonade stands this summer and raised money and awareness for the B+ Foundation.

TEENS

• The Hammonton Brass, a brass musical ensemble, has planned the following events to benefit B+:  a video game tournament, a church concert, and a gala wine and dessert affair! 
• Morgan Cottle held a silent auction for the B+ Foundation as part of her senior project for West Chester Henderson HS in PA.
• Meghan Carter and her friends celebrated their Sweet 16 and requested donations to the B+ Foundation.
• Tristan Pantano requested donations for his birthday.
• The Baldwin School in PA is going to have a new club -- The B+ Club -- thanks to Sarah Parmacek.  The club will support the B+ Foundation while raising awareness of childhood cancers.  What a great idea, Sarah!
• Mt. Pleasant HS Student Council held a "Hats for Andrew" day, which allowed students to wear hats in school and raise money for B+.
• Sydney Lysinger, one of our B+ Heroes, organized her school, St. Marks HS, to sell special wristbands and raise money for the B+ Foundation.
• Thanks to George Protopoppas and The Hammonton Brass, an ensemble of classical musicians that performs around New Jersey.  They held a benefit concert for the B+ Foundation, Pictures here.  You can listen to them here.
• Rachel Blythe organized a Penny War at Elkton (MD) High School to benefit the B+ Foundation.  Thanks for spreading the B+ Spirit to Maryland, Rachel.
• One of our own B+ Heroes, Savannah Pauley, recently celebrated her 10th birthday and in lieu of gifts, asked her guests to make donations to the B+ Foundation!  She knows only too well the toll that cancer takes.
• Summer O'Donnell, whose family we've been friends with for years, held her Sweet 16 in honor of Andrew and the B+ Foundation! Pictures here.
• Paul Blest, a old classmate of Ali's, helped organize and play in a concert that helped benefit the B+ Foundation.
• Maddy Buckley's Surprise Sweet 16 benefited the B+ Foundation in a big way:  guests were encouraged to bring "gifts" of $16 for B+, wear their B+ Gear, and dance under B+ balloons! Pictures here.
• Julianne Dominelli, Miss Mid-Atlantic Outstanding Teen, has chosen "Be Positive" as her platform.  She recently organized a Teen Variety Show and Silent Auction that we were privileged to attend and speak at.  Proceeds benefited the B+ Foundation and far exceeded Julianne's goal. Pictures here.
• Christina and Meghan desGroseilliers hosted a Teen Dance Feb. 6th in Hockessin, DE, to benefit B+. Thanks to all the area high schoolers who joined them for dancing and dinner.  The News Journal and NBC News interviewed the girls and Joe! Pictures here.
• Sydney Lysinger, one of our B+ heroes, and her school, St. Mark's (DE) are holding a 'Hat Day' in Sydney's honor with proceeds benefiting the B+ Foundation.
• Natalie Stewart, of the Coeur d'Alene (Idaho) HS's basketball team, organized selling B+ Gear at the District Basketball Tournament.  Thanks for spreading the B+ message to Idaho!
• Thanks to Maggie Connolly and Meghan Carter for donating their holiday charitable donation to the B+ Foundation.
• As part of his Mitzvah project, Sam Soeth sent us 6 gigantic boxes full of books, CDs and DVDs for the A.I.DuPont Hospital as well as a generous donation to the B+ Foundation from his Mitzvah money.
• The Kelly's Sweet 16 Party - Three young ladies (one set of twins and their cousin) celebrated their joint Sweet 16 Party recently and the girls asked for donations to the B+ Foundation in lieu of gifts. Approximately $3,000 was raised!

FAMILIES

• Many families have honored the B+ Foundation by requesting donations in lieu of flowers in memory of their loved ones.
• The John C. Schwind, III Memorial Golf Outing benefited the B+ Foundation in honor of John and his love of sports.
• North Star Elementary held a family movie night with proceeds from snacks benefitting the B+ Foundation.  Pictures here.
• Shelli Lynch and her family collected donations for B+ in support of their marathon, half-marathon and 5K runs at DisneyWorld! See a picture here.
• Catherine McBride and her fiance have created B+ notecards to place on each table at their wedding reception, and have made a donation to the B+ Foundation on behalf of their wedding guests.
• Jimmy Diana and his family represented the B+ Foundation at the St. John the Beloved Basketball Tournament.  Thanks to the Diana Family and all the fans who supported the foundation.

TEAMS

• Salesianum and St. Mark's H.S. ice hockey teams held their 2nd Annual Hockey for a Cause benefitting the B+ Foundation and DFRC.  Salesianum players wore B+ stickers on their helmets and won the game! Pictures
• Michael Baron and the soccer teams at Penn Charter in Philadelphia held a day-long SoccerThon that raised almost $2000 for B+ and introduced the Foundation to a lot of new supporters.
• Brandon, who played on Andrew's Olympic Development soccer team, got his Elkton HS (MD) soccer team to wear B+ shirts and had the announcer read a message about Andrew so the entire stadium would understand B+.
• Soccer teams representing Delaware in the Regional Championship in West Virginia raised money for each goal they scored in our Score for a Cure program. Let's hope even more teams go to Regionals next year!
• Andrew's high school soccer team, Salesianum, is Playing Like Andrew with a B+ logo on their training shirt this season.  Thanks Boys!
• The Greek community at University of Delaware held their 3rd Annual UDance marathon and shared their proceeds with the B+ Foundation.  B+ Heroes became fraternity brothers and sorority sisters, and UD students registered to be bone marrow donors.  It was a long, loud, fun day.   Pictures here.  Articles from the school paper, The Review: Article 1, Article 2.
• The U13 Dynamo Concord (DE) Soccer Team "live like Andrew" and "play like Andrew" wearing their B+ shirts as warm-ups on the field, chanting "Live Like Andrew", and exchanging B+ wristbands and B+ cards with their opposing teams.  Is it any wonder they're a winning team!
• Delaware Youth Soccer Assoc. and Hockessin Soccer held the Kohl's Cup soccer tournament and donated some of the proceeds to the B+ Found.
• Central DE Soccer Association asked players to collect donations for the Foundation and also sold B+ Gear.
• Andrew's high school soccer team, Salesianum, joined with their opponents, Caravel Academy, to sell B+ gear and collect donations for the Foundation.
• The Wilmington Tigers Basketball Club wear the B+ logo on the sleeve of their warm-up shirts and have raised money and awareness by wearing them up and down the east coast.
• NBSL Swim Teams from north Wilmington, DE, held their championships at Ashbourne Hills Pool and bought B+ Gear to raise $2,000 for families in need. 

ADULTS AND COMPANIES

• Barclays Bank employees are loyal B+ volunteers and raised $16,800 in 2009 in Barclay's Pound for Pound program, which matches volunteer hours with a monetary donation.  Thank you Barclays!
• Christine DePaul is asking her Facebook friends for donations to B+ for her birthday.
• Alicia Dreher and Sam Blinder are hosting Alicia's birthday at NYC hotspot Turtle Bay with a portion of the night's proceeds going to B+.
• Check out Hot Rod Photos 4U -- with every photo purchase, buyers are encouraged to buy B+ wristbands!
• The Touch A Truck held by the MOMS Club of Hockessin, DE, was a huge success, and they chose the B+ Foundation to benefit from the proceeds this year.
• Boscov's Department Stores of Concord and Christiana in Delaware allowed us to raise awareness, sell B+ Gear, hot dogs, and discount shopping passes, with proceeds benefiting the B+ Foundation. 
• Alumni of Salesianum and Concord High Schools in Wilmington, DE, have an annual golf tournament and this year they decided to make it a charitable event with the proceeds benefiting the B+ Foundation.  Fittingly, Salesianum won!
• The employees of TV Guide Magazine collect money for their workday snacks, and gave the proceeds from one month to the B+ Foundation.
• When Catherine McBride got married, instead of wedding "souvenirs," she and her husband gave a donation to the B+ Foundation on behalf of their wedding guests.  Their guests were delighted. Here's their story in the newspaper.