Connor was an active, sports loving, animal loving, children loving normal teenager until September 16, 2014 when he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins t-cell lymphoma. In June of 2015, after undergoing 9 months of intense chemo, he was in remission and the maintenance phase began. He was back to being a normal teenager and soaking up life. Back to school, basketball, proms, track, spending valued ti
me with family and friends. At a track meet on May 3, Connor was experiencing extreme pain in his hips as he was pole vaulting. We returned to Children's Mercy on May 6 and discovered that he had relapsed. We immediately started treatment again with a goal of a bone marrow transplant, but unfortunately, the treatments did not work this time. Connor fought with all he had, but gained his wings and entered his loving Lord's open arms on August 20, 2016. That smile that would light up the room, his hugs, his sense of humor and loving personality. Even his stubbornness and eye rolls! ;-) I chose to start Connor's Cuddles in his memory and is my way to continue to spread love in his name and keep his spirit alive. We make cuddles for children who are on journeys with health issues, be it cancer, heart, genetic disorders and more. Our goal is to bring love, a smile and a bit of comfort to children fighting these battles, as well as raise funds and awareness for childhood cancer research. We deliver cuddles to Children's Mercy in Kansas City, Children's Hospital in Omaha and the University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital, as well as shipping out special requests across the United States. As of July 2022, we have made over 2,200 cuddles, with 800 of those being shipped directly to children across the United States and Canada and other delivered to children's hospitals. We give financial help to cancer families and to date have donated $15,000 to Braden's Hope to assist in the research to find a cure for childhood cancer. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or to request a cuddle for a special child. God bless
