Program: Friends of Jaclyn
High School: Arlington High School
Location: Hopewell Junction, NY
Description:
Jaclyn Murphy is a 14 year old freshman at Arlington High School. Five years ago, on March 26, 2004, she found out that she had a brain tumor and had emergency surgery to remove it. During that time, she received calls of support from many of her peers and teachers. One call came from Matt Cameron, her youth lacrosse coach, and it forever changed her life, and the lives of so many around her.
Photo Gallery: Images of Jaclyn and Friends
After speaking with Jaclyn, Matt put a call into his friend, Kelly Amonte-Hiller, the college coach of the Northwestern University lacrosse team. Coach Kelly and her team forged a relationship with Jaclyn by sending her gifts, cards, pictures and text messages while she was going through chemo and radiation. That same year, the Northwestern team played in their first ever NCAA championship and they were on a mission. That mission was not just to win, but to win for their friend, Jaclyn Murphy. And they did, capturing the NCAA title that year.
Soon after, Jaclyn spoke with another little girl while waiting for her treatment. She realized that there were lots of other kids in her position who needed friends too, and Friends of Jaclyn (FOJ) was formed.
FOJ provides love, support and friendship to children suffering from pediatric brain tumors. Each child is paired with a collegiate or high school athletic team that provides unconditional love to their new friend. Currently FOJ, has over 90 children adopted by teams all over the country and there are over 200 teams on the waiting list!
Jaclyn and her foundation have been recognized all over the country by college athletic teams, yet in her own town, many don't know anything about what she has been through, accomplished and the thousands of people she has inspired.
Jaclyn is currently a member of the junior varsity lacrosse team at Arlington high school. Her past MRI'S show no evidence of disease.
For more information on Jaclyn and her foundation, visit www.friendsofjaclyn.org.
Photo Gallery
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