The Seany Foundation

Sean Robins was a typical happy student at Francis Parker. When he was 16, however, he was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare cancer of the soft tissues and bones that often doesn’t have symptoms until it’s too late. Sean struggled through brutal, endless chemo and radiation until he finally entered remission around the beginning of his senior year. He won homecoming king and sang and danced on stage, playing Daddy Warbucks in Annie––with hair. He was preparing to attend Northwestern for his freshman year, packed boxes and all, when the cancer returned in his lungs. He continued therapy for the next year with the hopes of going to Northwestern the following fall, but the spread to his brain.

Sean envisioned The Seany Foundation, a pediatric cancer charity, a year before his death. The family held off on starting the organization in case it didn’t raise that much money; they didn’t want Sean to be disappointed. Their pessimism was unfounded, because the foundation has raised almost $4,000,000 to this day. Sean died on November 17th, 2006, at the age of 22.

After Sean’s death, his parents Amy and Mitchell Robins started the Seany Foundation.  The Seany Foundation is a way for the Robins family to carry on their son’s battle with cancer and help others. Every day, 28 children are diagnosed with cancer and four die. 328,000 childhood survivors live in the US today, many suffering from lasting effects of their treatmen––cognitive problems, hearing loss, and scarred lungs, to name a few. Worse yet––and one of the most convincing reasons for the existence of the Seany Foundation––a mere four percent of cancer research money goes to the childhood divisions.

The organization’s initial focus was research. They partnered with UCSD to study various childhood cancer topics such as complexities of solid tumors and the stroke risk in pediatric cancer patients. Within several years, however, Amy and Mitchell realized that maybe it was better to treat the symptoms rather than the cause of cancer. So the Seany Foundation changed its focus from research to programs that help children deal with the trauma of their diseases. 

The perfect opportunity arose: in 2013, the American Cancer Society announced that they were closing all 52 of their cancer camps. This was after the camps had been open for 32 years. Camps such as Camp Rainbow Gold in Idaho and Camp Enchantment in New Mexico formed their own nonprofits to stay afloat. Camp Reach for the Sky is one of these camps; the Seany Foundation swept it up and it’s been fully funded since, recently passing their 18,000th camper milestone.

Camp Reach for the Sky is free. Campers stay in the woods out in Julian, choosing from multiple sessions so camp doesn’t fall within their chemo weeks. The Seany Foundation offers five different camps. Resident Oncology Camp is for patients and survivors age eight to seventeen. Here, they can drop the burden of cancer patient label––to put it simply, when everyone has cancer, no one has cancer. Within the camp is the "Med Shed," full of volunteer staff not only bandaging scrapes but also administering chemo and PICC flushes. Most of these doctors and nurses will look familiar to kids, since they work in San Diego county hospitals. They also wear shorts and t-shirts, leaving behind the lab coats that can be a gross reminder of cold and nauseating chemotherapy "suites."

Sibling Camp is nearly identical to resident oncology camp, except for the obvious––the children are healthy, and the Med Shed has no chemo hanging in IV bags. Siblings go through a lot, too––they can experience much more worry when the illness isn’t theirs to control and they live in the shadows of their siblings. Having a camp of their own is essential.

There’s also Day Camp, which is next to the zoo and designed for patients, survivors, and siblings ages four to eight. This year, the Seany Foundation introduced Family Camp, where 20 families venture out to a Julian retreat––these families, however, have healthy children and a sick parent. This camp focuses on the needs of the children, which often fade into the distance when their caretaker is sick. And in February 2016, Camp Reach for the Sky had its first Teen Winter Weekend since 2010.

"It's one of the most remarkable places in existence," former camper Lissa Corona told me. "From a camper's perspective, camp provides a home away from home. We feel safe, understood, and comfortable to be ourselves. As a counselor, your experience transforms and becomes one of learning, appreciation, and admiration for the most incredible people you will ever meet."

The Seany Foundation also puts on a variety of smaller activities for cancer patients. They do Seany Movie Nights at local rented theaters, inviting pediatric cancer patients from local hospitals. At the movie nights, they pre-sceen major movies such as those from the Harry Potter and Twilight series. Rady Children’s Hospital holds Art from the Heart, showcasing visual arts by young cancer sufferers. Rhythm of Hope is an event for patients at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the LAC+USC medical center; here, children gather with professional musicians for a healing session of playing music.

It costs around $570 for each child to attend camp, but none of them have ever had to pay a cent thanks to donations from community members. You can help by donating, attending charity events, sponsoring, and volunteering at the events and camps. Their next annual Everything is Possible gala will be held on September 24th, 2016.

For some kids, camp is their last chance to be normal, since some won’t live long enough to go back again. Their lives are threatened, so with any opportunity to feel normal and connect with similar children, the experience is sacred––maybe more sacred than healthy people could ever imagine.

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