Kids join walk to raise money for cancer group

By Ashley Livingston

Thursday, Oct. 9, 2008 | midnight

With his homemade JAWS for Grandma team T-shirt ready for wear, 8-year-old Evan Alejandro is all set to lead his friends and family in the Light the Night Walk Oct. 18.

The fundraising walk will be held at Town Square to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Evan's first walk was last year, after his grandma's August 2006 diagnosis of lymphoma.

His grandma, Sharon Arnold, underwent chemotherapy and has since been given a clean bill of health, said Evan's mom Sharlyn Alejandro, but that hasn't stopped the family's drive to help others faced with similar circumstances.

Sharlyn Alejandro said when her mom, who lives in Denver, was first diagnosed, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society was extremely helpful.

"We got these huge packets explaining anything and everything you would ever want to know about blood cancers," she said.

"It helped the kids a lot," she said, "because it's so scary when you hear the word cancer."

The family has since been trying to give back to the organization that helped it through such a tough time.

Sharlyn Alejandro said both Evan and her daughter, Rimma, 13, spent time during the summer volunteering at the local society's offices.

More recently they've been soliciting donations from friends and family to help the JAWS for Grandma team reach its goal of $1,000 in donations.

In e-mails describing the event and the team's goal, Evan explained that the team was named after his old walking group from when he was at Louis Wiener Jr. Elementary School (he now attends third grade at sister school Charlotte Hill Elementary School). The group is called JAWS (jogging and walking superstars).

Walking before school and during a few lunch periods every school day, Evan walked more than 200 miles last year.

For this year's walk at Town Square he and his team will have to walk only a little more than a mile.

They'll join the more than 700 other people society who campaign manager Kristi Snuttjer said have signed up for the walk.

Last year the walk had about 500 walkers and raised about $140,000, she said. This year the goal is to raise $155,000.

During the walk, survivors get to carry an illuminated white balloon while their supporters carry an illuminated red balloon.

New this year, walkers will have the choice to carry with them a gold colored balloon in recognition of the memory of someone who died from a blood cancer.

Snuttjer said the money raised at the walk will fund the group's financial aid program for patients, support groups, education programs and research.

To donate to Evan's team visit www.active.com/donate/ltnLasVe/2394_EvanAlejandro.

For more information about the event or to make a general donation visit www.lightthenight.org.

Ashley Livingston can be reached at 990-8925 or [email protected].