This holiday, Counseling Administrative Assistant Mandy Mulloy gathered a general consensus from all advisories regarding whether or not to switch the annual holiday toy drives from Toys for Tots to Kids Beating Cancer. More than 80 percent of the votes favored fundraising for Kids Beating Cancer.

  Kids Beating Cancer is a local organization in Winter Park, FL that focuses on working directly with affected families, ensuring that they help with all commodities, such as the balance of parent work hours and travel treatment plans. As a local organization, it hopes to gain more coverage around Florida by receiving help from Trinity with its toy drive.

  Mulloy believes that Toys for Tots, a national organization, lacked the personal connection that Kids Beating Cancer provides.

  “This toy drive is on a much smaller scale,” Mulloy said. “They are so appreciative of Trinity Prep just being interested.”

  Nikki Seybold, mother of sophomores Sidney and Reid Seybold, was an advocate of Kids Beating Cancer and believes that a cause is more influential when it is locally supported.

  “It’s easier to get behind stuff when you can actually see it and see the results around you and your community,” Seybold said.

  By partnering with Kids Beating Cancer, Mulloy hopes to focus the perspective of Trinity students on a local scale rather than a national one.   

  “I support youth driven philanthropy very much,” Mulloy said. “I feel that the youth at Trinity Prep don’t have a full picture of what is going on in their backyard. Supporting organizations locally is important to give perspective on how somebody like yourself and a person could get involved in their community and make a difference.”

     Diagnosed with Leukemia at the young age of three, sophomore Alessandra Garganese has personally experienced cancer firsthand. Although Garganese has never worked with Kids Beating Cancer directly, she loves the idea of supporting such a cause that has greatly helped her and her family when she was diagnosed.

  “People forget about kids who are in hospitals during Christmas,” Garganese said. “Being in the hospital on Christmas is terrible, and it’s good to help kids [who are in hospitals] feel loved.”