About Cookies For Kids' Cancer

Cookies For Kids' Cancer

When 2-year-old Liam Witt was diagnosed with childhood cancer in 2007, his parents, Gretchen and Larry, were devastated to learn about the lack of effective treatments due to limited funding. Even more alarming, they discovered that cancer is the leading cause of disease-related deaths among children in the U.S. and that two-thirds of children who undergo treatment suffer long-term, debilitating side effects. Determined to make a difference, they committed to funding research for safer, more effective treatments for pediatric cancers.

With the support of 250 volunteers, the Witts launched a massive bake-a-thon, baking and selling 96,000 cookies to raise money for research. Their efforts generated more than $420,000 and, just as importantly, sparked awareness, with people asking how they could help. What began as a one-time initiative grew into Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a movement encouraging people to “Be Good Cookies” by hosting grassroots fundraising events to support pediatric cancer research.

Today, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer has inspired more than 16,000 fundraising events across all 50 states and has granted nearly $20 million to leading pediatric cancer research centers nationwide.