Today we’d like to introduce you to Tara Gill.
Hi Tara, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
The Apple a Day Foundation was born out of friendship and loss. Our Founder Jayde Donovan met teen neuroblastoma patient Brittany Hamilton at an event dedicated to the research to eliminate childhood cancer. Brittany had been battling bone cancer for nearly a decade. The two became fast friends. Brittany was full of life, witty, and very artsy. Jayde instantly fell in love.
Over the course of her chemotherapy, it was clear that comfort was not an easy thing to come by. Trying to watch television or even using a laptop were not easy tasks. Jayde wanted to do something to help bring some joy and fun to Brittany, so for her 16th birthday, Jayde bought Brittany an iPhone. Little did she know the impact that would have.
Brittany was able to reach the outside world again—to surf the web with ease from anywhere. She was able to text and talk and stay in contact with her friends and family, all in the palm of her hands. She could even sit back and listen to her favorite music during chemotherapy. For the time that Jayde and Brittany were friends, Jayde’s goal was to change Brittany’s life. She wanted to show Brittany the world of radio, music, & bring joy to her life. What she hadn’t realized over the course of their friendship was that Brittany would teach her more than she could’ve ever known. Brittany passed away in 2010, losing her battle to bone cancer. Jayde was devastated and wanted to do something for Brittany’s memory to live on.
A year later on Brittany’s birthday, Jayde launched the Apple a Day Foundation in memory of her dear friend. Since its inception, AADF has surprised 1000+ kids fighting cancer with phones, tablets, and laptops.
Apple a Day is a not-for-profit that grants tablets, laptops, phones, and other devices to children fighting cancer. Technology can be a welcomed bridge to connect these kids to the outside world while they are undergoing treatment for cancer. Spending so much time in the hospital can be isolating for anyone. Human connection is so important for these kids during treatment- especially during long hospital stays when a compromised immune system prohibits them from physically being with friends and family.
We serve children currently in treatment for any type of cancer through the age of 17. Apple a Day works closely with hospital staff including communications and social workers, volunteers, and families to coordinate a special delivery for each child.
In the last 3 years, we’ve surprised hundreds of cancer fighters in Orlando, Tampa, and the New York City area with tablets, cell phones, and laptops. We love working with our partners to coordinate these special deliveries at Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital, Nemours, Advent Health Orlando, John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, Memorial Sloan Kettering, New York Presbyterian, Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Stony Brook Hospital and Hackensack University Medical Center.
Our recipients are dealing with the fight of their lives. Each procedure is invasive, painful, and time-consuming. Apple a Day children are able to use their devices to connect with family and friends, find a distraction during difficult treatments, keep up with schoolwork & distance learning, and stay connected during hospital stays. To you, it’s an electronic device, but to these kids, it’s a window to a world they are too sick to be a part of. It’s the simplicity of seeing a loved one’s face on the other end of a FaceTime call. It’s the distraction of a silly game that can be played while chemotherapy is being administered. It’s being able to graduate on time because the child has a laptop to finish important schoolwork that they may have missed while being in the hospital. The individual impact to each child is LIFE CHANGING.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Apple A Day Foundation has made many changes and shifts to survive as a nonprofit during the challenging times of the pandemic. We switched from in-person deliveries at the hospital to sending each device to the children’s homes in order to avoid passing on germs or illness to already immunocompromised children.
As a foundation, we decided to cease all in-person fundraisers, including canceling an Orlando Superhero 5k back in April of 2020. We are still dealing with these challenges as most hospitals do not allow non-family members to visit and many cancer families do not feel comfortable participating in fundraisers when illnesses are on the rise.
Since we have switched to virtual fundraising, it’s been a lot more difficult to raise funds for each device. We are still dealing with the effects of the pandemic, and we hope that through more exposure and word of mouth, people will see how life-changing these tablets are to pediatric cancer patients.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As Director of Apple a Day Foundation, I am able to make strong connections with families and children that I have met the past four years. I’ve had parents cry in my arms, so grateful that we were able to grant their child with an iPad that they wouldn’t have normally been able to purchase due to the rising costs of cancer treatment. Every child or teen has a story, they have life goals for when they are feeling better, and I make it my mission to connect with our families in any way I am able to.
Since we are a small foundation, I am involved in every part of our daily operations, and I am very thankful for that aspect. There have been some extremely sad moments along the way as some of these children do not survive to see remission, but I feel as if it has made me more thankful for the wonderful and positive updates that we receive from families. To see the smile on a child’s face when they are declared cancer free after they have gone through countless rounds of chemotherapy, blood draws, scans, hospital stays, and more is absolutely worth everything we do!
What makes you happy?
My family makes me happy, and I appreciate the moments we share together even more after seeing how difficult it is to have a child that is fighting cancer. I think sometimes we get caught up in the day-to-day hustle and bustle of life and forget to really truly be grateful for our health and well-being. Having a healthy child is a privilege and I’ve seen how quickly families go from a seemingly perfect life to struggling and watching their child struggle. Every moment is a gift, and we should all be reminded of that.
Contact Info:
- Website: Appleaday.org
- Instagram: instagram.com/appleaday4kids
- Facebook: facebook.com/appleaday4kids
- Twitter: twitter.com/appleaday4kids
