The Huddle: Summer 2022 Edition

THE HUDDLE

Welcome to the 2022 summer edition of our newsletter, “The Huddle”, which we hope will be

a helpful source of news and information for our teammates, donors, volunteers, and friends.

To keep everyone in on the game plan, we encourage you to sign up on our website to

continue to receive this newsletter quarterly.

MEET KATE AND ELLIE!

These beautiful identical twin sisters are five years old. Both girls are battling Leukemia.

Kate’s cancer journey began in October 2019. Ellie was diagnosed five months later in March of 2020. It has been a long, hard-fought battle for the girls these past two-plus years. However, they have never once lost hope or faith. They lean on each other in the hard times and find strength in fighting together. Kate finished treatment a couple of months ago and Ellie is on track to finish treatment this month. The girls refer to themselves as “Team Twinkles!”

MEET CAIDEN!

This mighty little boy is six years old. Caiden is battling High-Risk Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

Caiden was diagnosed with ALL on September 14, 2021. He is currently in the midst of treatment and is about one month away from finishing up the frontline stage. Once he completes this stage, Caiden will then move on to the maintenance stage of treatment.

Caiden is looking forward to starting kindergarten in the fall! In addition, he is anxiously awaiting to be cleared by his doctors to get back in the pool for swimming lessons and to get out on the soccer field with his friends. Caiden enjoys playing with his three siblings, playing with his dogs, playing Minecraft, and playing outside. His family shared with us, “Caiden has a huge heart and gives the best hugs!”

NOTABLE & NEWSWORTHY

BIG BUFFALO 50 2022

On Saturday, March 26, 2022, we hosted the fifth annual Big Buffalo 50 at Shelby Farms Park in Memphis, TN. 100% of the proceeds from this race go directly to supporting the kids and families of The Cancer Kickers Soccer club, making this race our largest fundraiser each year.

It was a wonderful day full of competitive racing, great food, and amazing fellowship! We had over 350 runners who participated in one of three races: a 50-mile race, a 50K race, or a 50K relay race. Running 50 miles is no easy task, however, it is nothing compared to the battles our Cancer Kickers teammates face every single day.

We have always strived to make this event as family-friendly as possible. This year, for the first time ever we had a "Kid Zone, " which included a ninja gym and a 70-foot obstacle course. This provided hours of entertainment and excitement and was definitely a hit with our younger crowd. We were also excited to offer a great variety of local food and beverage trucks, providing complimentary items to our runners.

It is a privilege to be able to put on this incredible event each year for such a worthy cause. We are looking forward to continuing to grow this race in the coming years. The Memphis community has shown us remarkable support over the past five years and this race would not be possible without them!

We would also like to take a minute to thank our 2022 sponsors for their generous support of the Big Buffalo 50. These companies are leaders in our community and we are honored to have them team up with us on this important event.

Mark your calendars for the sixth annual Big Buffalo 50 which will be taking place on March 25, 2023. For sponsorship opportunities please contact our Director of Development, Emily Patterson at [email protected].

DONOR OF THE MONTH

For this edition's "Donor of the Month", we are featuring the Floyd Family of Arizona, which includes Bill (Dad), Trish (Mom), and their four beautiful daughters, Rachel (a junior in college), Belle and Beasley (freshmen in college), and Wilson (a junior in high school). The Floyds were introduced to the Cancer Kickers Soccer Club through an Instagram post from one of our "teammates" who was proudly sporting their CKSC gear.

Wilson, their youngest, was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma when she was 14 and underwent ten months of intense treatment, including 14 rounds of chemotherapy as well limb salvage and tumor resection surgeries. As a club soccer player herself, having played the sport since the age of 6, Wilson was thrilled to join the Cancer Kickers Soccer Club. Her parents say, "Wilson's eyes lit up when she received her CKSC package with all of the awesome soccer gear. She was so happy to have a new team to help support her during her ongoing journey." In response, the Floyd family decided to give back to other kids fighting cancer by sponsoring 20 new "teammates" in the Cancer Kickers Soccer Club.

The CKSC couldn't be more grateful to this family for their generosity and we are so happy to share the news that Wilson is now 9 months NED (no evidence of disease)! Although her journey continues through recovery and frequent scans, Wilson can't wait to one day return to the soccer field and we pray that that day comes soon for this brave warrior.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

901 CUP SPONSORSHIP

The Cancer Kickers Soccer Club was the presenting sponsor for the 2022 901 Cup. This annual soccer tournament is held at Mike Rose Soccer Complex in Memphis, TN. This year’s 901 Cup was the best-attended tournament to date with 126 teams from over 18 different clubs who were both local and from out of state. The medals, backpacks, and banners that the Cancer Kickers provided gave a special flair to the event.

The Cancer Kickers Soccer Club is grateful to the 901 Cup for helping to promote our organization's mission. We look forward to continuing this partnership in the future and are excited about the ways in which we can build on this event year after year.

CANCER KICKERS CLASSIC

We want to give a huge shout-out to Christian Brothers High School for spearheading the first annual Cancer Kickers Classic. This first annual event featured a friendly cross-town rival game of soccer between Christian Brothers and Collierville High School. The coaches from each program wanted to create an event where they could come together annually and raise awareness, and eventually funding, for the Cancer Kickers Soccer Club. This year's Cancer Kickers Classic was a fantastic event held at CBHS’ home field and featured both the Varsity and Junior Varsity teams. We look forward to watching this event grow and to the many Cancer Kickers Classic weekends in the future!

NOTE FROM OUR FOUNDERS

Five very short years ago, Michelle, Ainsley and I delivered the very first Cancer Kickers Soccer Club kit to our first teammate. When we founded the CKSC, we had no idea the profound impact it would have not only on us but our families, our friends, and most importantly, our teammates and their families. Helping as many brave children as we can has always been our mission. Along the way, we’ve learned that the impact we can have is much greater! We are truly grateful to everyone who has helped us reach this point and look forward to the difference we can make in the next five years!