Just Braden

09/02/2026

🚴‍♀️ SAVE THE DATE! 🚶🏾‍♀️🏃🏾‍♂️🩸

Mark your calendars for our Cycle for Sickle Cell & Blood Drive Community Health Event!

📅 Saturday, August 29, 2026

🚴 Cycle • Walk • Run
🕣 8:30 AM
Enjoy a scenic route through the beautiful Town of Eastover while supporting individuals and families impacted by sickle cell disease.

🩸 Community Blood Drive
🕙 10:00 AM – 2:30 PM
Every blood donation has the power to help save lives. Your donation can make a life-changing difference for someone living with sickle cell disease.

After crossing the finish line, join us inside the gym for a fun-filled community celebration featuring:
✨ Sickle cell disease education
🤝 Community exhibitors & vendors
🎯 Games and activities for all ages
🍽️ FREE lunch

We're also welcoming volunteers, vendors, and exhibitors to be part of this exciting day!

Save the date, invite your family and friends, and help us build a healthier, stronger community....together.

For event details or to register, visit:
https://thebstronggroup.org/event/cycle-for-sickle-cell-community-event-blood-drive/

Or simply scan the QR code on our flyer.

09/02/2026

🚨 A Blood Emergency Has Been Declared. Your Donation Can Save a Life.

The American Red Cross has declared a national blood emergency, and the need for blood donors is critical. Hospitals depend on generous donors every day, and for many individuals living with sickle cell disease, blood transfusions aren't optional; they're lifesaving. The Red Cross is urging all eligible donors to make an appointment now to help replenish the nation's blood supply.

❤️ You can be part of the solution.

Join us for our Cycle for Sickle Cell & Blood Drive Community Health Event at:

📍 Eastover Park, 1031 Main Street, Eastover, SC

Whether you ride, walk, run, volunteer, or donate blood, your participation helps bring hope to individuals and families affected by sickle cell disease.

🩸 Reserve your blood donation appointment today:
https://tinyurl.com/2xhafpc8

(Use Sponsor Code: BSTRONG if prompted.)

If you're planning to donate, start preparing now:

🥬 Eat iron-rich foods
💧 Drink plenty of water
😴 Get a good night's rest

Please invite your family, friends, coworkers, church members, and neighbors to join you. Together, we can help ensure that no patient has to wait for the blood they need.

Every drop counts. Every donor matters. Every life is worth it. 🫶🏿

09/02/2026

IT STARTS WITH A PLAN.

Before we kicked off our 2026 events, the B Strong team gathered over lunch to reflect on the successes and lessons of 2025 and prepare for the year ahead.

We celebrated what we accomplished, talked about what we learned, and mapped out how we could continue to educate, advocate, and empower the sickle cell community.

Every event starts with a conversation, a vision, and a team willing to put in the work.

And this team was ready! 💪🏽💙

09/02/2026

This time, we’re giving the students the mic.

What is it really like to navigate school while living with sickle cell disease? What do students wish their teachers understood? And how do young people learn to speak up for themselves as they move toward college and adulthood?

Hear directly from Ayana Johnson, Laila Cavins, Maya Cavins, Braden Green, and Jasmin Baker as they talk about accommodations, missed school days, asking for help, stigma, self-advocacy, and what parents and educators can do better.

📅 Wednesday, August 12, 2026
⏰ 7–9:30 PM EST
💻 Virtual

We spend a lot of time talking about students. This conversation gives us an opportunity to listen to them.

Invite a parent, educator, school administrator, or young person who needs to hear their voices.

RSVP - https://tinyurl.com/504plans2026

09/02/2026

🫧 A New Tradition of Remembrance & Hope 🫧

This year, we are introducing our inaugural Bubbles of Remembrance & Hope Ceremony at our Cycle for Sickle Cell & Blood Drive Community Health Event.

Each year we dedicate our event in memory of Harriett Roberson Scott and this year we will gather during this special ceremony to remember and honor her, remember JaWanna Jones who inspired our family, and honor all of the warriors we’ve lost while celebrating those who continue to live and fight with sickle cell disease.

As our bubbles rise, may they represent love, remembrance, hope, and the promise to keep moving forward. 💙

So join us on Saturday, August 29th at Eastover Park. We will start early 8:30 am with warm-up and our ceremony. Then we will cycle, walk or run and return to the park for a day of learning, remembering, fellowship, fun and life saving!

🫧We remember. We honor. We keep moving forward together. 🫧

09/02/2026

❤️ Yesterday was beautiful.

Our annual Cycle for Sickle Cell & Blood Drive Community Health Event reminded us once again what can happen when a village comes together with purpose. There are so many people to thank, and we don't take a single one of you for granted!

❤️ Thank you to our event partners, Richland County Recreation Commission, the American Red Cross and , for working alongside The B Strong Group to plan and organize this annual event.

❤️ To the Eastover Park staff, including Mike and Al and led by Jacoreia; thank you! Your preparation, support and engagement with the community extend far beyond our event. You truly embrace the spirit of service to the community, and it shows.

❤️ Thank you to the COLA City Top Ladies of Distinction, Inc. for volunteering, once again, supporting our blood drive and bringing along the amazing TAA student volunteers to serve with us.

❤️ Thank you to the AWESOME Lower Richland High School Cheerleaders, who consistently show up to cheer on our cyclists, walkers and runners and then dazzle us with their talent!

❤️ Thank you to the James R. Clark Memorial Sickle Cell Foundation for continuing to show up each year to spread awareness and provide much-needed sickle cell trait screening.

❤️ Thank you to the Town of Eastover, my hometown, for supporting us and allowing us to walk, run and cycle the beautiful course through the town. And thank you to the Richland County Sheriff's Department, Captain Connors and Region 8 for returning year after year to help keep our route safe and then sticking around to enjoy the activities with us.

❤️ To Team Harriett, her daughters Adrienne Charsena & Ericka and Harriett's grandchildren, thank you for being there and representing our beloved Harriett Roberson Scott, in whose memory we host this event, and for sharing words of encouragement as we continue to honor her beautiful life and legacy.

❤️ To all of our vendors and exhibitors , thank you for bringing valuable information, resources and services to our community. A more detailed shoutout to you is coming!

❤️ A special thank you to Danni Snaps Photography LLC, who always shows up when I call! Thank you for using your gift to capture the special moments, beautiful memories and amazing footage from our events. We appreciate you continuing to help us tell our story through your lens.

❤️ To our inspiration, Braden, thank you for taking time away from your collegiate schedule to always show up. You continue to put a face to why the need for blood is constant and why we continue advocating for individuals and families impacted by sickle cell disease.

❤️ To Team B Strong, thank you for being there through the planning, the long days, the event itself and the wrap-up. I couldn't do this without you.

And a special thank you to my village; my husband, Patrick for going with my flow, my mom and dad for their unconditional support; my sister Angela for helping us navigate the day; my Aunts Tommie Jean and Orpha, who work hard behind the scenes and show up to make sure everything, especially that meal!, comes together; and my Lower Richland Class of 1989 classmates who continue to support this event. Special shoutout to Frank, Kevin and Lawrence for making sure those hot dogs and fish were cooked to perfection! ❤️

Importantly, thank you to our blood donors. Every time you roll up your sleeve, you are giving someone another opportunity to live and thrive. 🩸❤️

And to our community....THANK YOU for continuing to show up, learn, participate and stand with the sickle cell community. Your presence matters. We are also grateful for the community leaders who took time out of their busy schedules to stop by, show their support and continue to stand with us, including Barbara Weston, member of the Richland County School District One Board. When our community and its leaders show up, it sends a powerful message to individuals and families impacted by sickle cell disease that they are seen and supported.

If you missed us yesterday, put Cycle for Sickle Cell and our other events on your calendar for next year! Also check our events page and see what we have remaining for this year: 3rd Annual South Carolina Sickle Cell Symposium, a virtual 6th Annual Caregiver Summit and our T'is the Season to B a Life Saver Blood Drive & Educational Event!

Because sickle cell disease takes NO days off, and neither should advocacy.

Yesterday, our village showed up. ❤️

Educate. Advocate. Empower. Just B Strong.

~Brenda

(Disclaimer: Pictures included are from my phone and not the event photographer. 😊 Those pictures will be shared soon.)

01/29/2025

I was a miracle kid-fighting, hoping and overcoming. Now, I have the opportunity to give back and support kids who walk the same halls I once did.

Join me in making a difference in local kids’ lives. Let’s give hope, just like I once received.

A fundraising page for Braden Green

11/13/2024

A fundraising page for Braden Green

09/20/2024

💪🏾

09/19/2024

Please join me in helping to raise funds for my local Children’s Network Hospital, Prisma Health Children’s Hospital-Midlands.

A fundraising page for Braden Green