Meet Sabrina Madni, President of Love Your Melon! A pre-med junior studying Human Health and Religion and Philanthropy Chair of Kappa Kappa Gamma, Sabrina is clearly dedicated to helping other people. Read on to find out more about Love Your Melon and the many ways that you can get involved!
Her Campus Emory (HCE): What is Love Your Melon?
Sabrina Madni (SM): The Love Your Melon Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that gives a hat to every child battling cancer in America, funds childhood cancer research initiatives, and provides immediate support for children and their families. After putting a hat on the head of every one of the over 45,000 diagnosed pediatric cancer patients, LYM partnered with the Pinky Swear Foundation to provide immediate support for children battling cancer and with CureSearch for Children’s Cancer to fund research initiatives to beat childhood cancer completely. When a product is sold, 25% of the proceeds to to CureSearch for Children’s Cancer, 25% go to the Pinky Swear Foundation, and the other 50% is allocated to replenishing stock, buying superhero costumes for hospital visits, and paying for Superhero Adventures, a part of LYM programming that enables patients to be taken on a once in a lifetime adventure.
HCE: What inspired you to get involved, and how did you do so?
SM: I heard about LYM through a friend who was promoting her crew on social media. I immediately saw the image of a young boy in a LYM beanie, glasses, and a superhero costume and knew I wanted to help create moments like the one captured in this endearing shot. I asked my friend for more information about LYM and requested to start an Emory LYM Campus Crew…a month later, we have a full crew, a building wait list, and an abundance of people in the community all asking the same question: “How can we help?”
HCE: What kind of impact has Love Your Melon had on the children it serves?
SM: Love Your Melon has a national forum for crew members to share ideas and inspiration. While perusing through this page, one thing is clear: we are all very aware of the fact that, by dressing up as superheroes and visiting these children, we are reminding them that superheroes do exist. However, these children embody courage, innocence, strength, and positivity all at once. They are the real superheroes. Love Your Melon crew members have served over 45,000 children with positivity and care as they courageously battle such daunting circumstances.
HCE: Since this is a new organization on Emory’s campus, what are your plans for the future of the club?
SM: While the Emory LYM Crew is new, we are rapidly gaining interest. Nationally, Love Your Melon only allows 20 people on a crew at a time in order to keep efforts focused and cohesive. I believe that genuine interest and dedication are not only powerful assets, but an integral part of Love Your Melon’s success on Emory’s campus. My goal is to actively involve as many interested people as possible so that the Emory Love Your Melon Crew continues to flourish and people never feel as though they cannot be a part of our efforts to relieve the stresses of pediatric cancer.
HCE: How can Emory students get involved?
SM: Currently, there are multiple ways to directly lend a helping hand to Love Your Melon. First, students may apply to be on the Emory LYM Crew wait list. Should a spot open on the crew, an applicant from the wait list is added to the crew. An application for the wait list can be found on the Emory University Love Your Melon Campus Crew Facebook page. Second, if a member of the Emory Community does not feel as though they have the time to commit to being a crew member, they can email myself or Tori Constantine and ask to be added to the volunteer list. Volunteers will be informed of any large events we hold and given the opportunity to take part in hosting the event. Third, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram and Twitter! Love Your Melon relies heavily on social media; spreading the word is the first step to making a difference. Finally, the most direct way to help the Emory Love Your Melon Crew is to shop loveyourmelon.com and select “support Emory University” at checkout. Love Your Melon works on a points system, so the more items we sell, the more points we accrue, and the more points we accrue, the more we get to directly interact with pediatric cancer patients and ultimately make an impact on their life.
To find out more about Love Your Melon and what the Emory LYM Crew is up to on campus, be sure to like us on Facebook and keep an eye out for any events we hold. This semester we will be at Wonderful Wednesday quite frequently with something new and exciting each week. This coming week, on September 16th, we will be giving away sunO thai tea to anybody who can tell us the Love Your Melon Mission while supplies last!