KayStrong

06/12/2026

The 2026 Take a Bite Out of Cancer Tournament Shirts

03/06/2026

Kaylyn’s Story — Summer TABOC 2026 Beneficiary

Kaylyn has spent almost half her life fighting something no kid should ever have to face. She was only twelve when she was diagnosed with refractory leukemia, and from that moment on, everything changed. While other kids were worrying about school and friends, she was learning how to survive.

Her treatment wasn’t a straight line. It was chemo, CAR T therapy, total body irradiation, and a cord blood transplant. It was chronic GVHD that affected her skin and her GI tract. It was joint damage that eventually led to replacements. It was more than 688 days spent inpatient at MD Anderson, watching birthdays and holidays pass from a hospital bed.

Her mom has been by her side through every bit of it. Every appointment, every emergency, every long night. No breaks. No backup. Just a mother doing everything she could to keep her daughter alive.

Now at twenty, Kaylyn is still dealing with the long term effects of the treatments that saved her life. Heart problems. Endocrine issues. Chronic pain. Mobility challenges. Anxiety and depression that come from years of trauma and uncertainty. Her fight didn’t end when the cancer did. It simply changed.

But she’s still here. Still pushing forward. Still trying to build a life after everything she’s been through. And this summer, she’s one of our TABOC beneficiaries as she and her mom work to rebuild after eight years of surviving one day at a time.

12/09/2024

Kaylyn and our family have been blessed to be recipients of the Candellighters Adopt a Family since she was diagnosed at 12. She is no longer eligible for the program since she is now 19 🙏, but we would love to share the opportunity with others. 

This is a wonderful organization if you or your business would love to adopt a childhood cancer family for Christmas.

🎅 SPREAD JOY THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!❤

Now is your chance to support the Candlelighters Holiday Adopt-A-Family Program to bring joy to local childhood cancer families this season. Over the past 5 years alone, sponsors have brought hope, support, and joy to 1,533 Candlelighters families, providing gifts for over 6,690 family members.

This year, we are well on our way to serving over 300 local childhood cancer families! But we NEED YOUR HELP to finish the year strong!

🎁: https://tiny.cc/aafgift

Our Adopt-A-Family program aims to bring holiday cheer to families facing the challenges of childhood cancer or coping with loss. We support families in both financial and emotional need, recognizing that cancer affects the entire family, including siblings and parents.

Please consider a monetary donation TODAY so Candlelighters can provide gifts for families who have a child diagnosed with cancer closer to Christmas time. Your generous donation will help make the holidays a little brighter for families going through the unimaginable.

12/09/2024

If you are local to Houston come on out and support Kaylyn’s newfound passion Waiting Under the Willow Foundation - WUWF we would love to see you and hug your neck.

Hope to see everyone there!!! If you can’t make it please consider donating!!

https://www.paypal.me/WUWFrescue

Zelle email is [email protected]
Name is Angelique Strickler

12/01/2024

Please come out and show your support for WUWF!! Every dollar helps!!! We will be there from 4-8!

If you can’t make it, PLEASE donate!!! Thank you to all of our supporters!! We couldn’t save lives without each and every one of you!❤️🐕

https://www.paypal.me/WUWFrescue

Zelle email is [email protected]
Name is Angelique Strickler

11/24/2024

Here's a life update on Kay. She has been doing great since starting to volunteer at Waiting Under the Willow Foundation - WUWF this fall.

It has been the best few months for her, and I am so thankful to have met Angelique Perez Strickler this past August! Thank you for taking a chance on me and offering her an opportunity!

I am also excited to share we are having a “Christmas Pawty” to raise funds for WUWF.

If you want to make a tax-deductible donation, we are looking for gift cards, wine, and silent auction items for the party.

All items are needed by December 8, 2024 ❤️🎄🐕

09/26/2024

https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2024/09/26/cancer-survivor-shines-a-light-on-awareness-while-finding-purpose-in-volunteering/

18-year-old Baytown native, Kaylyn White, is the newest volunteer at Houston-based animal rescue, Waiting Under the Willow Foundation.

09/13/2024

Kaylyn has been looking for a purpose since beating cancer, and we have found it! 🫶🙏

Waiting Under the Willow Foundation is just what she needs, and these animals need her just as much! I can not wait to see her do something she is passionate about. Cancer took so much from her, but God’s plan is always bigger and better.

Stay tuned, friends. Her future is bright 😎!

09/04/2024

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
Please take the time to share these facts to bring hope and strength to every child battling cancer.

Childhood cancer affects every demographic across the United States and around the world. With advancements in research, survival rates have increased, but still, the majority of those children who survive often face a lifetime of health complications from the toxic treatments used to save their lives.

• Did you know every 3 minutes, a family’s life is turned upside down when they hear the four devastating words, “Your child has cancer.”

• Cancer remains the most common cause of death by disease among children in the United States.

• 1 in 7 children diagnosed with cancer in the U.S. will not survive. For the ones who do, the battle is never over.

• Childhood cancer is so hard to research because it’s not one disease - there are more than 12 types and over 100 subtypes.

• New childhood cancer drugs don’t make it to clinical trials until an average of 6.5 years after they’ve been tested in adults.

• Cognitive impairment affects up to one-third of childhood cancer survivors.

• More than half of all pediatric cancer research funding comes from non-profits and other foundations.

• Americans spend more at Starbucks in three days than the Federal Government does on pediatric cancer research.

05/16/2024

Kaylyn is out of surgery, and I finally got to see her. 🥹🙏

Her surgery went well, but they ended up needing to cut her Piriformis muscle because it was so tight, and her Psoas were also extremely tight. They had difficulty getting the implant in without stretching it, which could cause tendinitis. She will need a lot of work in PT, and she is scheduled to meet with them tomorrow.

Please continue to pray for her pain to be well controlled!