Joyful News
Learn about the kids and families we support and the volunteers, staff, and partners who make it all possible.
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The Healing of Harmonies: One Mother’s Story with JoyRx Music
For children who love playing and embarking on adventures, bumps and bruises are common and are often nothing to worry about. A parent can give their child a hug and an ice pack, and most kids are back on their feet ready to play again. However, for the now five-year-old daughter of Madiha, the bump on her finger was life-changing.
Chicken Wings & Milk: The Joy of Personalized Songs
When Jaimi first reached out to JoyRx, her request was simple: a song for her four-year-old son, James. Located in Alaska, James wasn’t receiving his treatment at a JoyRx-served healthcare partner facility, but Jaimi heard about JoyRx though an online support group and hoped for a connection through our Digital Live offering.
JoyRx Hosts St. Patrick’s Day Concert at Dell Children’s Medical Center
Is there music played in hospitals? That’s a resounding yes! JoyRx celebrated the St. Patrick’s Day spirit with a concert just for Dell Children’s Medical Center in Austin, Texas.
Zoa Meets Panic! At The Disco for Thirteenth Birthday Surprise
Like many 12-year-old girls, Zoa has pictures of her favorite band, Panic! At The Disco, plastering her walls. Unlike, many girls, Zoa is also battling Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), pre-leukemia bone marrow failure. When Zoa learned that Panic! At The Disco would be coming to Portland for a concert, she told her parents that more than anything, she wanted to see them live.
Meet CCA Hero, Veda
Veda is a charming young talent who is truly wise beyond her years. Both compassionate and polite, she’ll greet you with a handshake, a warm smile, and ask how you’re doing today.
Meet CCA Hero, Jacob
Seventeen-year-old Jacob Daskalakis has a contagious smile and a zest for life that is apparent the moment you meet him. He loves riding his dirt bike, running, cheering on the Portland Trail Blazers, and making others laugh.
Music Volunteer Spotlight: Meet Tim Uecker
An experienced MyMusicRx Volunteer, Tim Uecker has played music for kids battling serious medical illnesses for over 15 years. He started volunteering in 2001 when he was working at a local music shop and heard about the MyMusicRx Hallway Harmonics volunteer music program.
Meet CCA Hero, McKenzie
In 2014, life threw McKenzie a pretty big curveball. She came down with what seemed to be a simple case of the sniffles — but was actually a rare virus that caused devastating polio-like symptoms. Twelve days later, she was paralyzed from the neck down.
Our Story Is About Epilepsy
At 18-months-old, Colton started having seizures. What began as a mere eye flutter, eventually escalated into 5-hour long episodes and a medically induced coma.
Meet CCA Hero, Marcella
Marcella Mercado is a courageous young woman who dances circles around her cystic fibrosis — literally. She loves to dance, everything from hip-hop and lyrical to jazz and ballet. Although her disease requires her to take a few extra precautions, she refuses to let it get in the way of her life.
Meet CCA Hero, Jesse
Ask his friends and family to describe Jesse, and one word always comes up: generous. This thoughtful 18-year-old loves to put others before himself, even though he’s the one who’s fighting leukemia.
Meet CCA Hero, Jazzy
Make way for Jasmine “Jazzy” Soria-Pons! She may be just three years old, but this sassy little girl is already running the show. “One night at the hospital, she got all the other kids out of bed and led them down the hall in an impromptu parade,” laughed her mom Monique. “She’s just a natural born leader, I guess.”
Meet CCA Hero, Henry
Henry is a good-natured three-year-old with a serious thing for superheroes and garbage trucks. He faces every day with boundless energy and joy—in fact, the first thing he says when he wakes up is, “Yay! It’s morning time!”
Meet CCA Hero, Holly
Holly is a sweet, quiet third-grader who loves the color purple, practicing the piano, singing, riding her bike, and playing board games with her parents and four siblings.
Meet CCA Hero, Aaron
At 13, Aaron was already a Renaissance man. He played the alto sax. He sang in the choir. He’d even trained in ballroom dancing. And in the midst of it all, he battled leukemia.
Meet CCA Hero, Jordyn
Jordyn is a kind, creative girl who dreams of being a scientist or a movie director. A real social butterfly, Jordyn has a large circle of pals and cherishes them all.
Interview: Remembering Christopher
FOX 12’s Amy Troy meets the parents of a little ball of energy named Christopher.
Interview: The Bruno Family
Tigard third grader Holly Bruno loves practicing songs on the piano, singing, and playing board games with her parents and siblings. She was a typical 8-year-old girl until August of last year, when pain on the side of her face led to a diagnosis of a type of cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma.
Meet CCA Hero, Jayden
Jayden “J-Bear” Moore is a funny, quirky girl with a bright smile and a big heart. Tragically, her mother and twin sister died in the same car accident she was injured in; Jayden spent the better part of a year in the hospital recovering from her injuries.
Meet CCA Hero, Matt
Keep an ear out for Matt Pozsgai. This talented musician is about to record his first album, Where it All Started, with his group Fearless in the Fight. It’s a fitting description for Matt’s approach to cystic fibrosis, something he’s lived with since he was just four months old.
Create Joy with us!
Individuals and organizations can make a difference in the lives of the kids and families we serve through giving, volunteering, partnering, creating events, and so much more.