Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope Provides a Lifeline in Palm Beach County

But Caedyn’s childhood has also been shaped by a battle few children ever face. Diagnosed with a pediatric optic glioma – a brain tumor – when he was just 1 year old, Caedyn has spent most of his life undergoing treatments and traveling to Miami for specialized medical care. The tumor presses against his optic nerve, leaving him blind in his left eye and causing various other complications.

Through it all, his mother, Jessica Fairbanks, has stood firmly beside him. A single mother of three boys – ages 7, 8 and 12 – Fairbanks works full-time as a social worker at The Lord’s Place, helping people who are experiencing homelessness in Palm Beach County. Yet even with a steady career, caring for a child with complex medical needs often creates overwhelming financial pressure.

“It’s always a struggle, living on one income in Palm Beach County, and I have had to take time off from work to care for Caedyn and to travel to Miami for appointments,” she says.

For years, a local nonprofit has stepped in to help: Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope. “As soon as I heard about them, I applied, and they have been very helpful,” Fairbanks says.

Most recently, the organization covered the family’s mortgage payments for February, March and April – relief that allowed Fairbanks to focus on her son’s care instead of worrying about losing their home.

“They’ve helped us keep food on the table,” she says. “They’ve helped with our mortgage, with holidays, with school supplies for the kids.”

In fact, one year the nonprofit nominated the family for a Palm Beach County holiday drive that helped Fairbanks purchase a vehicle, which she needed for Caedyn’s treatment.

For families facing cancer, those kinds of practical needs can become overwhelming. That’s exactly the gap Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope was created to fill. Founded in 2003 by Charles Fischer Jr. and Greta Jean Fischer, the grassroots nonprofit began after the couple realized that while many organizations raised money for cancer research, very few provided emergency financial assistance to patients struggling to survive day-to-day while undergoing treatment. Palm Beach County patients were losing homes, having utilities shut off or choosing between groceries and gas for medical appointments. Today, the organization has grown into a vital community lifeline, serving more than 1,200 patients and family members each year across Palm Beach County.

“This year we are on track to disburse $1.5 million to more than 300 families,” says CEO Stanton Collemer, who has led the organization since 2016. “That provides vital assistance to at least 1,300 individuals.”

The nonprofit’s mission is simple but powerful: ensure cancer patients can focus on healing rather than financial survival. Through its Direct Patient Assistance Fund, the organization helps cover rent, utilities, groceries, transportation, insurance and even pet care. Payments are made directly to creditors.

Programs extend far beyond bills. Newly diagnosed patients receive customized “Champions of Help & Hope” care baskets filled with household essentials, comfort items, grocery and gas cards. A patient navigator connects families with resources throughout treatment. A special closet provides wigs, scarves and caps for patients experiencing hair loss.

And through the Companions 4 Life Fund, the organization helps care for pets – often an overlooked but vital source of emotional support.

With the family’s much-loved four dogs, that program has been especially meaningful to Fairbanks.

“They help people with gift cards to make sure their pets are fed,” she says. “When you’re going through something like this, your pets help you get through it.”

One thing that sets the organization apart, she says, is its willingness to support families for the long haul.

“A lot of charities ask us what the prognosis is or what the end date of treatment is,” Fairbanks explains. “But Caedyn’s case is ongoing. They can’t remove the tumor – the goal is always to shrink it and stabilize it…It helps to have someone in your corner who’s not ready to close out the case.”

The nonprofit also creates moments of joy for families navigating illness. It hosts events that bring patients and loved ones together, including back-to-school bashes with custom-stocked backpacks, Thanksgiving giveaways with turkeys and pies, pumpkin patches, zoo outings and family fun days.

For Fairbanks, those experiences have become cherished traditions.

“At Halloween the Cancer Alliance has a pumpkin patch, and the kids get pumpkins,” she says. “At the back-to-school event, the kids all eat pizza together. For Christmas, they make sure we have gifts under the tree. And for Thanksgiving, they give out pies and a turkey. We pick up a pumpkin pie and eat it on the way home because my kids all love pumpkin pie. That has become an annual tradition we look forward to. It’s a little thing, but it’s not little for us.”

Behind those programs is an enormous effort. More than 200 volunteers help organize the organization’s events and fundraising initiatives, including two of Palm Beach’s most anticipated charity gatherings: the Shop the Day Away Luncheon, which celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, and the Dance the Night Away Gala, now in its sixth year.

Held at The Breakers Palm Beach, the glamorous gala – which was on March 13 this year – featured a delicious dinner and a celebrity ballroom dance competition in which local personalities train for months before taking the stage – all to raise money for cancer patients in the community.

For families, that support can mean the difference between constant crisis and the ability to breathe. Thanks to the compassion of the community and the unwavering support of Cancer Alliance of Help & Hope, cancer patients like Caedyn and his family don’t have to face the journey alone.

For more information, visit cahh.org or call 561-748-7227.