Sink your teeth into the sweetest bake sale around town, and help raise money for childhood cancer research on Aug. 31.
Starting at 8:30 a.m. at 1 Woodmont Court in Mantua, stop by to purchase an array of cookies for the 10th annual Cookies for Kids’ Cancer bake sale. The fundraiser runs until supplies last and baked goods can be purchased with cash or a check written to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer.
Organizer Evelyn Milavksy, who is closing out her time with the organization, said all funds generated from the bake sale with be matched by the OXO Childhood Cancer Foundation, an affiliate of Cookies for Kids’ Cancer.
Matches are coordinated through the Good Cookie Challenge, an initiative to encourage participants to generate more donations.
She added there will be cookies such as sugar, chocolate chip, double chocolate, among others, as well as brownies, Rice Krispies treats, cakes and other baked items for sale.
“My favorite [type of cookie] is probably sugar because they’re so simple and under-appreciated and overshadowed by chocolate chip,” Milavsky said.
Cookies for Kids’ Cancer started in 2008 after Larry and Gretchen Witt learned of the cancer diagnosis of their son Liam. In response, they sold 96,000 cookies to offset Liam’s medical expenses.
The National Cancer Institute estimates there will be 11,060 new cases of cancer in children from birth to 14 years old this year. The institute also said pediatric cancer is the leading cause of death from disease in children.
“I’m fortunate that I didn’t have to go through that as a kid,” Milavsky said. “The goal is to create a world where no kid has to experience getting their childhood taken away from that fight and give other kids an opportunity to be a kid.”
The 16-year-old said she started doing the fundraisers 10 years ago after receiving cooking lessons from her mom and wanting to use them to give back to other people.
With this year being her last year to participate in the bake sale, Milavsky said it’s “sad” to end her term, but it’s needed as her bake sale continues to grow each year and she’s nearing college.
“[The organization] symbolizes a lot of hope and progress in our society,” she said. “They’ve been able to raise money for clinical trials and you can see what their work – and my work – has done for kids all over the world.”
According to its website, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer has raised more than $15 million, funding 100 pediatric cancer research grants, which funded 37 new treatments in clinical trials, since 2008.
To make a digital donation to Milavksy’s fundraiser, visit www.CookiesForKidsCancer.org/Fundraiser/Mantua10. To start a bake sale or a fundraising event for the organization, visit its website and click “Get Started.”
“The main thing is to promote our hopeful message in creating a better life for the kids diagnosed with pediatric cancer every year,” she said.
