This last year was one of isolation and loneliness, and mothers were one of the groups hit the hardest. Then there were moms like me who faced a childhood cancer diagnosis – something that would be crippling without a pandemic. My husband and I faced the unimaginable with our now high-risk daughter, and I couldn’t even hug a friend. So I used my platform to fundraise and to start a Marco Polo support group for moms with a child going through cancer treatment. Know someone going through treatment? Here’s how you can help.

A Marco Polo Childhood Cancer Support Group for Moms

One of my saving graces was my beautiful friend Stacy, who I connected with via my friend Jess Keys. She went through treatment with her daughter exactly two years before us, and virtually held my hand through the scariest parts of treatment. That connection saved me, and I knew that along with fundraising, making other moms feel less alone during the darkest days was what I was meant to do. It gives some purpose to the pain. 

How I started fundraising and raising awareness

I’m someone who will come up with an idea, not do enough (or any) research, run with it, and hope it works out. I threw a fundraiser together with basically zero plan outside of sharing our story on social media and decided to hold some last-minute auctions on my blog. By the time Margot finished frontline treatment in January, we had raised $100,000. It honestly wasn’t that hard so I can’t take much credit – I just used my platform, and some very generous people and brands donated items to auction and money to help families in treatment. I am eternally grateful for every single donation. 

Every few weeks, I hear from yet another mom of a newly diagnosed child.

The child is usually a toddler around age 2-3, and more often than not, it’s ALL B, the most common type of Leukemia. Even our best and most supportive friends can only help so much because unless you’ve been there, there’s just no way to understand. I knew the moms I’ve connected with could all help each other and new moms that come my way. Facebook groups are not my favorite place since they’re too medical and there’s way too much (negative) noise, so this seemed like the next natural step. 

A Marco Polo Support Group for Moms

This needed to be a private group where we could share our stories, but not just anyone would have access. I started a group in the Marco Polo app and within less than 24 hours, had 13 moms join. If you’re not familiar, we’re all recording the equivalent of instagram story selfie videos, everyone is able to watch, reply, and it feels like an intimate conversation with someone who’s reassuring us that we’re not alone. 

If you are a mom who has a child going through cancer treatment, you are not alone. Please email me at hello@danielle-moss or send me a message on instagram, and I’ll add you to our group.