Kiwanis clubs raising funds for Doernbecher

In February, the Kiwanis Club of Cathlamet and other Kiwanis clubs in the region will hold their annual campaign to raise funds to support children's cancer research at the Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Portland.

Kiwanis clubs throughout the Pacific Northwest Region are organizing efforts to finance post-doctoral cancer research aimed at reducing the tragically high mortality rate of cancer in children and youth.

The Cathlamet club is partnering again with its affiliated Wahkiakum High School Key Club to raise public awareness of the importance of this research among students, parents, and the general public.

"Thanks to the past work by the Key Club members and their families, almost everyone has heard of the inspiring work being done at Doernbecher," said Kiwanis spokesperson Dick Swart.

In addition to supporting the Key Club's efforts, Kiwanians are reaching out to the shoppers by placing "Doernbecher Days 2012" donation jars in local retail establishments during the month of February. All money collected in the jars will go directly to the Kiwanis Children's Cancer Prevention Program at Doernbecher.

Swart said the hospital recently reported that 61 children from Wahkiakum County were served at Doernbecher last year.

"Veteran Kiwanians recall that 20 years ago a referral to Doernbecher was the last hope, with barely 10 percent of the children surviving," Swart said. "After steady progress with new research and treatment strategies, as many as nine out of 10 children survive."

"The low-hanging fruit has been picked," local club President Trinidad Medina said at a recent meeting. "Now comes the harder and more expensive job of preventing and treating the more stubborn forms of cancer in children. I urge everyone to keep this in mind and look for the donation jars when out shopping, and be as generous as possible for this worthy cause."

More information about the Kiwanis Doernbecher Children's Cancer Program can be found at these websites: http://www.kdccp.org, and http://www.kiwanis-kccp.org.