Socks don’t usually make it onto kids’ wish lists, but for the recipients of “Socks with Stories,” they’re exactly what they need to stay warm – and strong!
Childhood cancer can be extremely lonely. That’s why one organization is empowering survivors to spread love and support to tiny patients across the country using special pairs of socks.
Jake Teitelbaum discovered the true meaning of resilience after a diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma forced him to leave school. Not long after, the college student reached his breaking point.
While he was undergoing treatment in the hospital, he saw himself in a mirror and cried at the weakened state of his body. But then he caught a glimpse of the quirky socks he was wearing – and smiled.
That day, he learned that resilience is about finding and embracing strength in our weakest moments. The experience inspired him to start Resilience Gives, a company that is using specially-designed socks to create a supportive community for both cancer patients and survivors.
Through the company’s Socks with Stories initiative, children who have battled cancer can create non-slip socks with fun patterns of their own.
Each pair comes with a photo of the kid who designed them and their cancer story. For every one that is sold, another is donated to a child in the hospital.
What’s more, other young survivors deliver them personally!
“For families in the thick of cancer treatment, seeing children who have moved into survivorship gives hope that there’s light at the end of the tunnel,” Resilience Gives states on their website.
Not only do the socks brighten countless children’s days, but they also send a beautiful reminder in their time of need “that someone else has been in their shoes, that they’re not alone,” said Kirsten Payne, whose daughter Kynslee passed away from lymphoma in 2018.
She recently delivered socks to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to honor her little girl.
What a sweet way to help kids cozy up and feel more comfortable in their hospital beds. We never knew socks could be so uplifting!
Share this story to spread the word about this company’s amazing mission – and support them by grabbing a pair of socks for $20 here.
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