By the time I met Colleen McGrath in high school she was already surviving pancreatic cancer and madly in love with One Step at a Time camp because it saved her life by curing her spirit. Her mom had passed away of cancer before shortly before Colleen was diagnosed but her dad became a second parent to me since Colleen and I were always getting into trouble together. Our senior year of high school Colleen came to Mexico with me and my family for spring break. We had an amazing time in the sun and on the beach which made the news we received when we got back a complete shock; Colleen’s dad was diagnosed with same cancer that her mom died of. He passed away our sophomore year of college. I still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when Colleen called to give me the news and was one of the first moments I was truly impacted by cancer.

Colleen always held One Step very close to her heart so I was honored when she asked me to get more involved by becoming a camp counselor.  I was a little nervous at first but agreed to give it a chance. I attended winter camp as a counselor in 2011 and had such an amazing time with the kids I knew I had to go to summer camp. Colleen convinced me to be in the same group as her and I was excited to get to spend some time with her at camp.

The April before summer camp Colleen was diagnosed with colon cancer. A lot of us couldn’t believe that lightning had struck twice. Colleen still decided to go to camp and received treatment while she was there. She needed to take it easy but also needed to be around the kids that inspired her to keep going. It is in that way that Colleen inspires other. For as loud and boisterous as she can be, she is a humble person and probably doesn’t fully realize the impact she has on others. She inspires the kids at camp who hear her story and realize they can beat cancer too, she inspires her friends and family by fighting through any obstacle in her way, and she inspires people she hasn’t even met to support and fundraise for a camp that gives children with cancer an opportunity to just be kids.

This organization is very important to me, and I am excited to have the opportunity to raise money on its behalf. There are many ways that you can join the cause. The idea is for this to be a grassroots campaign, where people give what they can and spread the word to their friends, family and co-workers. Even better, you can easily set up your own branch campaign customized for your own network of contacts by hitting the Create a Branch Campaign button above. If you don't want to create your own campaign, please consider passing this along to those who may have interest in donating to our cause. Ideally, I am trying to collect $35 from anyone willing to donate in honor of our 35th anniversary. Any help that you can provide will be greatly appreciated though. Please help us send kids with cancer to camp! Thanks again!