Arcadia Restaurant Raises $50,000 for Childhood Cancer Research
During St. Baldrick’s Day 2012
William Klopper, a 9-year old, being treated at City of Hope helps shave his Mom Lois last Thursday at Matt Denny’s. -Photo by Terry Miller
It’s really not hard to see why people get invloved in raising money for childhood cancer research, especially when you meet young people like William Klopper, a 9-year old with a truly contageous smile as wide a the Rio Grande. Klopper has spent the last year of his young life at City of Hope hoping to find some answers for his exceptionally rare cancer.
Dr. Clarke Anderson has been treating William Klopper for his rare abdominal cancer during the past year. Dr. Anderson, who is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at City of Hope, has treated patients at City of Hope for the past 7 years and is devoted to children and their welfare.
Diagnosed in the summer of 2010, William’s form of cancer, known as desmoplastic-round-cell tumor, according to Dr. Anderson, is a particularly aggressive form of cancer which required a bone marrow transplant for young Klopper in addition to intense series of chemotherapy treaments.
Last Thursday evening , the charismatic Klopper shaved his mom’s head at Matt Denny’s as part of the 10th annual St. Baldrick’s childhood cancer fundraiser. Lois, his brave mum, was shaving her head in solidarity with her son who was going home to Sacramento for treatment at home with an oral chemotherapy known as Temodar. Dr. Anderson said conventional treatments at the City of Hope had been exhauseted and that home treatment with Temodar was now indicated.
On hand for the festivities Thursday, Dr. Anderson decided to let William Klopper shave a “W”on the side of his head, to which quickly quipped “ I’ve marked you!”
Dr. Anderson this year agreed, after 12 years of requests, to shave his head this year as part of the St. Baldrick’s celebrations and fundraiser. However, he already had agreed to let some of other patients shave his head in N. Hollywood on Saturday – hence the reason for the “W” only at Matt Denny’s.
Matt McSweeny “truly outdid” himself according to one Arcadia firefighter by hosting the biggest and most popular childhood cancer fundraiser in the area as part of St. Baldrick’s Day for the 10th year in a row.
There were 147 shavees this year. And as of Monday monring the tally of cash raised for childhood Cancer research was $45,522 . That total will be closer to $50,000.00 accortding to McSweeny who has held the fundraiser at his popular Arcadia resyrant and ale house for the past decade.
Each year, 160,000 children are diagnosed with cancer worldwide. Cancer is the number one disease killer of children in the U.S. and Canada.
On March 17, 2000, reinsurance executives John Bender, Tim Kenny and Enda McDonnell turned their industry’s St. Patrick’s Day party into a head-shaving event to benefit kids with cancer. Their 20 “shavee” recruits planned to raise “$17,000 on the 17th.” Instead, they raised over $104,000!
The movement has grown into the world’s largest volunteer-driven fundraising program for childhood cancer research, and today the St. Baldrick’s Foundation funds more in childhood cancer research grants than any organization except the U.S. government. Since 2000, more than 189,660 volunteers — including over 17,200 women — have shaved in solidarity with children with cancer at events in dozens of countries and every U.S. state. Thanks to generous friends and family, these shavees have raised over $117 million for research.
