Shani Thornton will talk about her now 20 year career as a Certified Child Life Specialist, the last 10 years of which have been involved with running her own practice in Sacramento California.

Kailyn Thelen has health issues of her own, which do not include any type of cancer, and still is able to run her own non-profit which concentrates on making blankets for children with pediatric cancer and other diseases. Kailyn met Ali Herbert when she was just 2 months away from passing away from her battle with Very High Risk Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, which happened on November 29th of 2020, the same day as her mom Heather's birthday. Kailyn will talk about Ali and about what she does to help others, as she is dealing with her own health issues.

Nici and John Robinson live in England and lost their son Charlie to a Grade 3 Ependymoma in 2021, after he was diagnosed with this Brain Tumor when he was 2 years old in June of 2018. Nici and John will talk about their beloved son and will also discuss the Respite Homes that they have made available for families who are going through a Pediatric Cancer diagnosis with one of their children. The Robinson's have set these Respite Homes up through their Thumbs Up For Charlie Foundation.

What was thought to be a stomach ailment for Meryl Summers 1st grade daughter Adelia became much more than that in February of 2023 when she was diagnosed with the Pediatric Brain Cancer Diffuse Midline Glioma. Adelia was called the Wonder Girl for so many reasons during her 15 month battle with this disease which very sadly ended with her passing on May 30th of 2024. Since that time, Meryl has become a fierce advocate for the cause of Pediatric Brain Cancer and has testified in the Massachusetts State House for a bill which recognizes the cause of Pediatric Cancer be passed and signed into law as soon as possible. 

After recovering from her battle with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in the late 1990's Shannon Hartey had a number of late effects that bothered her until 2020. By that time Shannon was in her early 30's  and these late effects got so bad, that Shannon was unable to know from day to day whether the intense  pain level that she was receiving in her head for a variety of reasons  combined with other cognitive issues that can happen to her at any time , will allow her to have even a normal day. The alternative, which happens regularly, takes her to a health level that is so difficult, it can make her life totally miserable on many levels. What Shannon has been diagnosed with, all because of her treatment for ALL which she received after this form of Pediatric Blood Cancer was discovered when she was 6 years old in 1994, is known as SMART SYNDROME. These late effects are almost totally unheard of, and have been very difficult for some of the best oncologists and doctors to have an answer for. 

After Megan Bugg was diagnosed with Stage 4 Alveolar Rhabdomyosarcoma in late 2014, she underwent a very difficult treatment protocol which included 150 weeks of toxic Chemotherapy , 200 Radiation treatments, 5 trips to the ICU, and 8 surgeries. Even so, Megan fought her disease every day and became an amazing and well known advocate for the cause of Pediatric Cancer before her passing on March 9th of 2022, 7 years and 2 months after her diagnosis.

Juno Wollf was born on October 11th of 2022 and was doing well until James noticed a lump under his right armpit. As happens too often, the doctors who looked at Juno did not figure out that this lump was an indication of a Malignant Rhabdoid Tumor, which was finally diagnosed on December 17th of 2022. Just 47 days after Juno's diagnosis on February of 2023, he passed away from this form of Pediatric Cancer, which is diagnosed in 20-25 kids each year. Juno only lived for a total of 114 days. 

Bonnie Corcoran will talk about her beloved daughter Brenna who was diagnosed with DIPG, just 8 months after Bonnie and her husband Robert had taken custody of her, then adopted her when she was 3 1/2 years old. Brenna was born with a Cocaine addiction thanks to a family member and was welcomed by Brenna, her husband Robert, and their 5 other children, all of whom were at least 10 years older then she was. Brenna fought her DIPG as much as she could, before passing away on September 6th of 2022. 

Keith Desserich-will talk about the budget cuts from the National Insititute of Health, a huge cut from the National Cancer Institute which I just found out about and I mentioned in my outro, and other monetary losses that will have a negative affect for Pediatric Cancer patients and their families.

Jonathan Cottor and his family were living in England when his son Ryan was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy when he was 9 months old in 2001. Ryan was not expected to live past his 2nd birthday but lived 15 years longer than expected, passing away in December of 2018. While in England , Jonathan and his wife Holly saw a Respite Home that was common in England but was unheard of in the United States. Jonathan moved his family to his original roots in Phoenix Arizona in 2003, where he and Holly created the Ryan house, which was similar to the home that they saw and that Ryan lived in on occasion in London. After Ryan's passing, Jonathan has dedicated his life to coming up with programs that would lead to the building of these Palliative Care Respite homes across the United States and hopes to have 50 programs completed and 50 houses built, one in each state within 5 years.

Being a Certified Child Life Specialist is one of the most important careers that anyone who has a passion for those that are going through a Pediatric Cancer experience can aspire to. Shani Thornton is a prototype for how important this role is and she will talk about the many things that she is involved with on a daily basis as a Child Life Specialist that helps so many people deal with the psychosocial part of dealing with a disease that no one wants or deserves.