TeamJess • Hope & Heroes

Today is National Cancer Survivors Day.

A day for anyone who has heard “it’s cancer” and face it with grace, courage, and resilience.

Those who endured the surgeries.
The treatments.The scars.The fear.
The unknowns.The anxiety.
The recovery.

Cancer changes your life.

But so does surviving it.

Today is for every survivor who fought hard to still be here & overcame so much.

scars are proof.
strength is undeniable.
your story is inspiring.
your life is worth celebrating!

Today, if this is you; there is no space for survivors guilt. Not today.
Take this day to say “I did it”
And be proud for overcoming something very hard in life.

We honor you.

With Love,
Jo & Jess

2026 Cancer Free Kids
Butterfly Walk
LM Gold Families Team recap

We extend our deepest gratitude to our community, friends, families, and local businesses for their support of our 2026 LM Gold Families team. We came together as a small (but actually big) group and it was a great day despite the rain!
Thanks to the contributions we received, our team achieved a top 3 placement in the event, thereby increasing awareness about our LM Gold Families Group and the amazing kids in our community we serve, while also securing crucial funding for pediatric cancer research.

The event's total fundraising exceeded $180,000 this year.

Special recognition goes to our Gold Families, who raised funds & advocated for their children and numerous others who have faced similar challenges because they believe in the power of pediatric cancer research. These are some of the best families who have faced the unthinkable and still work to give back through their own challenges.

A special shout out to Miss Hannah Grace & the Billman family whom we walked in honor of this year. They couldn’t be with us but they were still with us in many ways. Hannah Grace had a big week and we are still celebrating her big win over cancer (x3).

A special thanks to CancerFree KIDS for all they do for the champion kids, angel families and their efforts to help kids have the best treatments possible.

Thanks again everyone for your support! 🎗️

I want to take a moment and say thank you to our LM teachers, especially Mrs. Houillion’s team that helped Hannah this year in 3rd grade. They also showed up to Hannah’s ringing of the bell, which was so GREAT to see. Love our community!
Hannah had to miss all of third grade in classroom teaching due to her treatment plan and Brooke & her team made sure Hannah stayed on track and finished 3rd grade in a great way!
Cancer affects not only the child and their family but also our teachers and school staff who also care about the child and put in extra work to help them succeed under not normal circumstances.
Just a special thank you to ALL teachers who work with these kids!
You are appreciated!💛

Go Andrew!!💛

💛💛💛

Just a little bit long, but we have some new followers to this page who might be wondering why this page is called “TeamJess”…..

We would like to take a moment to share the inspiration behind our involvement in supporting kids & families with cancer.

Our daughter, Jess, was a 12-year-old student at LM when she began experiencing wrist pain. After X-rays, blood work, multiple doctor’s visits, and an MRI, we were admitted to Cincinnati Children’s for more testing where we received the devastating diagnosis on 9.27.16 of Acute Myeloid Leukemia, KMT2a. We wouldn’t leave the hospital again for another 35 days and then return after 5 days at home for another 30+ days repeating that schedule until 2.27.17 when she was discharged and remained in remission. Returning to normal life had its challenges but she prevailed and is now about to celebrate her 10 year cancer anniversary this Fall.

The outpouring of support from our community, including Jess's school friends, cheer friends, teachers, and staff, was instrumental in helping her & us navigate this difficult period of her life. Their kindness, care, and unwavering support gave Jess & our family the strength and hope needed to persevere.

We created this page in round two (October 2016) of her treatment to share updates with our friends, family, our community, and keep them informed about Jess's journey.

Being inpatient meant we were more isolated and Jess missed many normal things as life went on around her/us. This page wasn’t used for attention or gripes about our situation, those that followed us then know we used it to shine light on staying positive in hard times and pulling through speed bumps and celebrating “FriYAYs”. It was a source of encouragement then for us and our community and continues to be used for that purpose and more.

The term 'TeamJess' was a constant reminder of the community's love and support & our desire to mirror that for others. Through the past decade as we've moved forward, we've come to realize the importance of community in overcoming adversity and the difference it can make in the lives of those facing childhood cancer. Community matters because no one is meant to go through life alone. In the good times, it gives us people to celebrate with. In the hard times, it gives us strength, support, and hope when we need it most. A strong community reminds us that kindness, connection, and showing up for one another can truly change lives.

Through this thinking & desire to mirror the love & support we received, our Little Miami Gold Families Group was born and today we have 10 families in our community who are just that:
“Community” to one other. It’s an honor to support, encourage, and lift them up how and when we can!

We are forever grateful that through the most difficult part of our lives as a family that hope can still be shared, that lifting up others can be in the forefront, that raising awareness about what kids face and endure can remain important to our community.

With Love,
Jo (Jess’s mom)

GO Hannah Grace!
3x Wilms Tumor CHAMPION!

She’s small & mighty!