Help Dear Jack fully fund 2023 programs for young adult cancer patients and survivors.
LifeList is a wish-granting program that offers hope and support to young adults who are currently receiving treatment for a life-threatening diagnosis. This program provides positive experiences to focus on during treatment and an opportunity to connect with a community of young adult patients, survivors, and advocates who have experienced similar journeys.
LifeList program enrollment applications will open on January 2nd, 2023 at 10:00am MST
If you are a young adult, ages 18-39, currently in treatment for cancer, you may qualify for the LifeList program. To get more information, please complete the above LifeList Interest Form. Program spots fill up quickly!
The LifeList program serves cancer patients who are between the ages of 18-39, currently receiving active treatment, and meet one of the following criteria:
LifeList program applications are accepted on a quarterly basis. 2022 dates listed below:
A program application link will be available on the Dear Jack Foundation website at www.dearjackfoundation.org/lifelist at 10:00am MST on the above dates. Please note that available program participant spots fill very quickly.
Check back here to apply at 10:00am MST on the first day of the quarter!
The total budget for a LifeList program participant wish is $2000.
LifeList program participants are an active part of the program for a total of 6 months from the date of acceptance. All LifeList wishes must be completed or ordered within those 6 months. Please be aware of your health status and the reality of being able to fulfill your requests within that time frame.
Dear Jack Foundation is unable to accept wish requests for VISA/AMEX/Amazon gift cards, cash, or financial assistance (rent, mortgage, home repairs, car payments, student loan payments, medical expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, credit card payments, etc).
While Dear Jack strives to make wishes come true, we reserve the right to deny a wish or request modifications. If Dear Jack has concerns about your wishes, we will communicate appropriately with you and work together to create the best experience for you.
"The seizures my cancer has caused have made it so I cannot work or drive and have to be monitored at all times. It is very limiting on my self-sufficiency."
"I have yet to find a career, and wondering how this is going to affect that has been hard. "
"This cancer diagnosis and the prognosis have really changed what my wife and I are envisioning for our lives and what the future looks like. It's a hard thing to come to terms with at 27."
"In a matter of just a couple weeks I lost my ability to use my right arm, I can’t walk without assistance, and my speech is impaired. I just want to feel normal again."
"The way I see it, we have to make a daily choice to try to transcend pain before it consumes us."
"I was just becoming independent when cancer hit. It really took emotional energy to feel ok about asking for help."
"Your 20s and 30s is such a fundamental time of change and involvement in the life of others, transitioning from a role of dependency on others to someone others depend on. Cancer ruins that. Cancer makes you dependent. Cancer robs you of the ability..."
"I got engaged and it scares me that I won't get to live a full life with my future wife."
"I don't feel I am the mom I could be or was because of cancer and that's a really hard pill to swallow. It's definitely made me realize how precious and valuable my life truly is."
"I know that this cancer will kill me one day, but that's not today so I do my best to live life to the fullest while I still feel well enough to do so."
"I am most looking forward to the experience of being part of a program that has helped other survivors. Having that sense of feeling like I fit in will make such a huge impact on my life!"
"I am thankful for my parents' support because I am sure this is just as tough from their point of view when it comes to my situation and the outlook on the rest of my life."
"We want our boys to have beach vacation memories just like we do from our childhood; cancer has a hard time fighting for mental space in the sun and the sand!"
"I want to be able to spend quality time with my kids without worrying about doctor’s appointments and the financial strain this has all caused."
"One day my biggest concerns were finding a wedding florist and securing a career after graduation and the next day I was being told that my bone marrow was chock full of cancer. "
"It has been difficult to deal with the turn of events that took me from a vibrant, healthy, hard-working young man who was enjoying life with the love of my life and our little guy, to what has now become my new normal of extended hospital visits,..."
"I have a 3 year old daughter who, thankfully, is too young to understand more than that I have a "boo boo" on my head, but I worry constantly about whether I will be around as she grows up."
"I hate the thought of not being here for my kids and raising them - not being here for hugs, wiping tears, kissing boo-boo's, teaching them lessons I've learned through life, and helping guide them in their lives."
"I have three children and I work full -time and I am barely keeping my head above water during the time of my life when I should be most active and happy."
"All I want is to see my daughter grow into the beautiful woman that she will become and to experience life with my forever human, my husband, Michael."
"The hardest part of all of this is having two children and the fear of possibly leaving them without their mother."
"Even though I look alright at first glance, I just can't keep up with other young adults and end up being a drag in most social settings. Just imagine trying to take your 90-year old great-granddad hiking; that's me, in a 31-year old's body!"
"It is hard watching my friends and the people I went to school with move on with their lives (getting married, having kids) and my life is basically on pause."
"I was really looking forward to graduation, finding a job in my career field, and looking for a place to live with my girlfriend but instead I have no normalcy in my life."
"I knew I was going to fight this and I have and did. I will not let this define me, I will not let this beat me."
"Sometimes I’m just so tired and my small children don’t understand. They want to think mommy is superwoman."
"I was sitting on the patio watching it rain and there was a little squirrel using his own tail as an umbrella. I feel like that squirrel sometimes, in the elements, dealing with what life throws with me all on my own. Not really making progress, but..."
"I'm lucky enough to have a support system nearby that will always be there for me and provide me a soft place to land regardless of my situation and circumstances."
"It has been so difficult to face an uncertain future for myself and my family as we have to navigate this."
"Watching my friends move around the country, starting jobs, getting married, or going to grad school themselves has been really hard emotionally for me; it's an added stressor that I wasn't really prepared for with this journey."
"It is so difficult to see my peers move on and achieve all of the things that were once my goals."
"It has been difficult to face my own mortality. I just want to see my daughter grow up."
"I am very strong which I never would have realized before my cancer diagnosis. I feel like I can write a book or become a motivational speaker."
"It has been so difficult and isolating knowing that others my age can never understand my experience."
"I miss being able to go out with friends, go to movies, concerts, festivals, and parties."
"Life is so precious and short that I want to make sure I have valuable experiences and happy memories, particularly with my partner. I just want some good news, some good times."
"I work full time and cannot keep up with medical expenses and full time school."
"One of the most difficult aspects of being a young adult and battling cancer is grieving over how you expected your life to be."
