Our Story
The Jessica June Children’s Cancer Foundation (JJCCF) is a nonprofit IRS approved 501(c)(3) public charity created in 2004 by Sandra Muvdi shortly after losing her only child to cancer. The Foundation was created in memory of Jessica June Eiler Muvdi (1996-2003). JJCCF is a small nonprofit where each child served, and each contributor is a superstar. We assist children throughout the state of Florida.
Imagine you are told your child has cancer. What would you do? Sandra Muvdi, the founder of JJCCF, discovered in her words “Your entire life turns upside down and you are thrown into a downward spiral leading to various types of situational crises.”
Imagine dealing with the trauma of your child battling a life-threatening illness while unable to provide food or pay the rent to keep a roof over your family. Even worse, imagine you’re unable to pay for medical tests and treatments critical for your child’s survival. Unfortunately, many low-income families lack the financial resources required to provide optimal care for a sick child.
A diagnosis of childhood cancer creates an immediate medical and emotional crisis while also creating a financial crisis for many families. JJCCF is committed to providing supportive care services and emergency financial relief to help families enduring pediatric cancer pay for everyday necessities such as housing, food, medical, utilities, vehicle, and gas for transportation. This direct and tangible temporary financial assistance JJCCF provides is vital to the survival of these children while they receive cancer treatment and prevents a family from spiraling down. Furthermore, our programs bridge the gap between mainstream and disadvantaged families fighting childhood cancer so that all children can have an equal chance to beat cancer.
While in treatment, a child is continuously in and out of the hospital, has a compromised immune system and often must be homeschooled. As a result, a parent most often must give up their job and source of income to become a full-time caregiver. Although the financial crisis is temporary, it can plunge a hard-working family into poverty. Many of the children who qualify for our programs come from a single parent household and have qualified for government assistance programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income, yet families are unable to cover their basic needs.
No family should have to deal with such distress at this dreadful time in their life when their main concern should be saving their child’s life. Giving these families a helping hand lets them know they are not alone and prevents destabilization to the point of no return. They can get out of poverty and become self-sufficient soon after the child finishes treatment. JJCCF’s immediate and timely interventions have prevented evictions, foreclosures, car repossessions, loss of electricity, and malnutrition which ultimately has resulted in the children having a better chance of surviving the fight against cancer.
