About Light The Night
At The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light The Night we gather as a community to celebrate, honor, and remember those touched by blood cancers. Friends, families, schools, corporate teams, and sponsors join together to bring light to the darkness of cancer. The funds raised by this community fund lifesaving research, advocacy and support for blood cancer patients and their families. Join us in the fight to cure cancer!
It is highly recommended that all blood cancer patients or other immunocompromised individuals check with their healthcare provider before attending this event. Research conducted by LLS and others has shown that some blood cancer patients do not get optimal protection from COVID-19 vaccination and may continue to have heightened susceptibility to contracting and becoming ill from COVID-19. While at the event, we urge our community to respect anyone’s choice to continue to take precautions like masking or social distancing.
There will also be a virtual event experience provided for any participants who would prefer to not join us in-person, held on November 15, Details to come in emails to all registered participants in early November.
IN-PERSON EVENT
Date: Thursday, October 6, 2022
Location: Stinson Park @ Aksarben Village 2285 S 67th St, Omaha, NE 68106
Parking: Lots next to site
Get a lay of the land here!
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
6:00 PM – Festival Activities Begin
7:45 PM – Walk Begins (immediately after Opening Ceremony)
9:00 PM – Walk Ends
OTHER FAQS
How long is the walk? The walk is approximately one mile.
What if there is weather on event day? The in-person event is rain or shine.
Are dogs allowed? Yes
Can participants turn in donations at the event? Yes, participants can turn in donations at the Donation Collection tent at the event. CASH WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED and will have options to donate electronically.
We acknowledge some participants might need ADA accommodations. We do our best to provide these accommodations at every location, however, depending on weather and venues, it may be difficult for participants using wheelchairs to move freely around all areas of specific walk sites. If you have questions or need support, please call us at 888-557-7177 in advance to discuss accommodations. Meeting the needs of all participants is very important to the Light The Night experience.
Introducing our 2022 Pediatric Light The Night Honored Hero
Grady
My Story (As Told by my Mom Marissa)
It was Spring 2020, and everything was beginning to shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. We were spending a lot of time at home and Grady was having a blast. It was the beginning of April and we noticed that Grady was having difficulty walking. He didn’t complain much at first and then over a weekend we noticed walking was getting much more challenging for him. On Monday April 6, 2020, we decided it would be a good idea to take him to the pediatrician to have a look. That was the first day that Children’s had moved around sick and well-visits to certain offices and covid protocols were put into place. At that time, only one adult was allowed at the appointment. We did not see Grady’s pediatrician that day due to the changes. The pediatrician for the sick visits had Grady do some x-rays and then sent us to the hospital for blood work. After the hospital, we came home and started making lunch. Lunch wasn’t even over yet, and we got the call from Grady’s pediatrician. It was the worst phone call a parent could ever get. She informed us that Grady’s labs did not look good, and it was cancer. She told us to pack our bags and immediately get to Children’s Hospital because they were expecting us. At this point, we did not know much or the exact diagnosis. Again, with covid, only one parent was supposed to be allowed at the hospital. Since it was a new diagnosis, they allowed both me and my husband to be with Grady. Once we arrived, the hospital started an IV for Grady and he started blood and platelet transfusions almost immediately. It was a revolving door of nurses and doctors giving us tons of information about Grady and what to expect with this new cancer diagnosis. The next day, he had his port placed and began treatment for Pre-B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. We spent 11 nights at the hospital with the initial diagnosis. During this time, Grady lost his ability to walk, and it took almost two months to gain his strength to walk again with the help from PT.
It was challenging navigating a new cancer diagnosis, but we also had to figure out how to live life during a pandemic at a time where there were many still unknowns. After the initial hospital stay, all other appointments were one parent only for the longest time. The hospital staff became family and helped carry us through the challenging port accesses and lumbar puncture days. We will forever be grateful to the staff at Children’s Hospital for always being so kind and helpful. We spent a lot of time at home to try to keep us all healthy and decrease the risk of infection for Grady. Grady is currently in the maintenance phase of treatment and has an end treatment date for June 2022. We know that there will continue to be doctor visits, follow up, continued medications but to have an end in sight gives us something to look forward to. Grady has big plans for life after “no more port.”
Grady is a wild four-year-old boy and continues to be in remission. He loves construction, dinosaurs, and anything with wheels. Grady loves playing and spending time with his friends. This winter he became a big brother and has fallen into that role perfectly. Anyone that meets Grady will tell you that he leaves a special mark on their heart. He is resilient and inspiring.
Last fall was our first Light the Night experience. We didn’t know what to expect and decided to go last minute because Grady’s counts looked good, and the weather was perfect. We were blown away with the experience and cannot wait for this fall. We can’t wait to share the experience with our friends and family and bring awareness and funding to find cures for blood cancer.
2022 Light The Night Executive Committee
*Tom Burt | President & CEO, Elections Systems & Software
Derek Briscoe | VP Risk Consultant, USI Insurance
Ashley Carroll | Division Manager, Community Benefit & Advocacy, CHI Health
Jack McKeegan | Private Wealth Advisor, Harrison Financial Services
Nick Patrick | Regional Sales Manager, BigID
Mike Quinn | Private Wealth Advisor, Williams, Quinn & Associates
Tony Schultz | Project Manager, Kiewit Building Group
Kyle Skiermont | VP Pharmacy & Therapeutics, Nebraska Medicine
Josh White | VP of Investor Relations, Metonic Real Estate Solutions
*chair emmeritus
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