Marist is one of several college campuses that is familiar with Jaclyn Murphy’s name. Jaclyn, a Marist junior, is the creator and founder of her very own non-profit organization that has a strong presence on college campuses around the nation and is drastically changing young lives on a daily basis. HC Marist sat down with Jaclyn to discuss her story and incredible success.
Jaclyn was diagnosed with a brain tumor in March 2004 when she was only nine years old. Before getting sick, Jaclyn was regularly engaging in her passion for sports by playing lacrosse with a local clinic at a gym. She “took to the sport well” and fell in love with it right away. The coach noticed her dedication to the sport and was concerned when she stopped regularly attending the clinic. When the coach reached out to her parents and learned of Jaclyn’s illness, he immediately took action. Her coach contacted Alexis Venechanos, the assistant coach of the Northwestern Woman’s Lacrosse team, who shared Jaclyn’s story with the team. Moved by Jaclyn’s story and wanting to help, the team sent Jaclyn a care package and Jaclyn soon discovered that the team would be playing at Johns Hopkins University. Wanting nothing more than to meet her new sisters, Jaclyn drove five hours to attend the game. There was “not a dry eye in the house” after Jaclyn met the team, and the players were so inspired that they thanked their number one fan, Jaclyn, in an announcement at the end of the game. She kept in constant communication with the new support system that soon became her best friends.
After taking a trip to Disney World through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Jaclyn underwent treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in Manhattan. One day in the waiting room, Jaclyn was receiving text messages from the girls on the Northwestern team when a little girl next to her asked her who she was texting. Jaclyn replied honestly by saying “my friends” and moments later the girl disappeared to meet with her doctor. When the young girl left the room, Jaclyn turned to her father and said “We need to get that girl a team.” In that moment, a “light bulb went off” in Jaclyn’s mind. Today, that light bulb is known as the Friends Of Jaclyn Foundation.
In 2006, Jaclyn and her family began a vast array of connections to a couple victims of childhood cancer with collegiate sport teams across the United States. Word spread quickly about the foundation and its tremendous mission with the help of the media. The women’s lacrosse team at Northwestern made it to the final four in 2004 and 2005. The team was given the honor to meet President Bush after winning a national title. At the meeting, team members were wearing flip flops. Members of the media created a scandal of what they viewed as an act of disrespect toward the President and named it the “flip flops flap.” The graceful team members, however, were holding a sign that read “Jaclyn, we love and pray for you.” Thanks to the media-induced scandal, Friends Of Jaclyn received a great deal of publicity and really began to take off.
“I’ve seen kids unable to walk, talk, or do anything,” Murphy said. “But when they’re with their team, they prove to their doctors that they can do things they were told they couldn’t do. They feel normal, like they aren’t being judged, and they’re happy. Parents are touched to see their children happy again.”
The process for a team to adopt a child begins online, where families can sign up to be paired with a team, and Friends of Jaclyn members work to find teams located close enough for families to interact with. Today, Friends of Jaclyn has paired over 500 victims of pediatric brain tumors with sports teams and have restored some hope in some of the world’s bravest children. The organization is active in 48 states and even Canada!
“I love being able to make kids feel good and happy, and putting them out of their pain and misery for a little,” Murphy said. “They are showered with love and support by a new team that become their brothers, sisters, and lifelong friends. Most of them won’t have a chance to be part of a team, and in the long run, this experience benefits them both mentally and physically.”
Jaclyn is a hardworking member of the Marist community. She is majoring in Communications with a concentration in Advertising. Ideally, she would love to work with athletic companies such as Nike or Under Armor. Six Marist athletic teams so far have been part of the adoptee process for Friends of Jaclyn and athletes look forward to further involvement in the future.
What’s in store for the fall? There are countless events and fundraisers in the organization’s near future. Enter the code JACLYN when making any purchase from Soybu online this on September first through the eightth – 15% of sales is donated directly to the foundation. The foundation works closely with Alex and Ani, a company that frequently donates a percentage of bangle sales to Friends of Jaclyn. Other students have been moved by Jaclyn’s story and are in the process of involving the greater Marist community in the organization. If you want to be part of an exceptional cause with remarkable people, become one of Jaclyn’s Friends. Keep an eye out for fundraisers and events and look out for the new little superstars that may be leaving their mark on the Marist fields this year!
Photo Credit 1: Jaclyn Murphy
Photo Credit 2: http://www.friendsofjaclyn.org/