16-Year-Old Leads Worldwide Movement to Find a Cure For Pediatric Cancer
Melville, NY (PRWEB) November 17, 2015 -- When 16-year-old Jordan Belous decided to raise money for pediatric cancer research she didn’t expect her message to become a worldwide movement. It began as a video on Facebook asking people to help whip pediatric cancer by sharing videos of themselves doing a popular dance called “The Whip” on social media. A mere three months later, her video has been viewed nearly half a million times and people from around the world have participated in the Whip Pediatric Cancer movement. In the process they are raising tens of thousands of dollars for pediatric cancer research.
Jordan’s personal story fueled her passion for supporting pediatric cancer research. When she was two years old her mother was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare form of pediatric cancer that occasionally occurs in adults. Jordan’s mom only survived because of a clinical trial being done at Memorial Sloan Kettering at the time. As Jordan grew older and learned about this experience, she was inspired to become involved with children’s cancer causes.
The idea for Whip Pediatric Cancer came to Jordan this past summer when she was volunteering at a camp for kids with cancer. One of the kids’ favorite activities was doing the dance in Silento’s “Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)” video. That’s when she put two and two together, and decided to create the Whip Pediatric Cancer challenge. She posted a video on Facebook challenging people to dance or donate.
To date people from all 50 states and 47 countries have joined the Whip Pediatric Cancer movement. Thousands of videos and comments are being posted to social media, all in an effort to whip pediatric cancer. While Jordan’s original intention was to raise funds for pediatric cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering, the Whip Pediatric Cancer Challenge has inspired hundreds of spin-off fundraisers, which have collectively raised tens of thousands of dollars for pediatric cancer causes.
“It’s amazing to see how kids are getting involved,” said Victoria Belous, Jordan’s mother. “Schools are challenging other schools. They organize events where the entire school does the video and then challenges another school.”
Every day 43 children are diagnosed with cancer and 1 out of 8 of those children will not survive. The average age of diagnosis is only six years old. Whip Pediatric Cancer has the potential to do for pediatric cancer research what the “Ice Bucket Challenge” did for ALS. To learn more please visit WhipPediatricCancer.org or Facebook.com/WhipPediatricCancer.
Seth Belous, Whip Pediatric Cancer, +1 (631) 445-8681, [email protected]
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