Bar and Bat Mitzvah fund-holders at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba recently allocated their funds in support of Kendra McBain’s “Walk for Kids” and its goal of refurbishing the “teen room” at CancerCare Manitoba.

Kendra was diagnosed with rabdomyosarcoma, a rare cancer (only about 100 diagnosed cases in North America and New Zealand in the past six years) that forced her to endure 29 treatments of chemotherapy, major surgery and 55 sessions of radiation before losing her courageous battle on December 22, 2009.

Throughout the course of her treatement, Kendra’s goal was to transform the “teen room” at CancerCare Manitoba into a comfortable sanctuary for teens' use before and after treatment - somewhere where they could have privacy as well as interact with other teens who are dealing with similar situations. "Before she died, Kendra planned the whole room out - colours, furniture and everything," said Graham McBain, Kendra's brother. "She even requested to sit in every piece of furniture to make sure it was the right one before they put it in the room," he added. "The room is incredible and they decided to name it 'Kendra's Way' in her memory."

To help raise funds for the new room, Kendra organized the "Walk for Kids" - with participants being comprised of mostly St. John's Ravenscourt students. The initiative was Kendra's way of giving back to the community that had supported her and her family throughout her treatment. The balance of the funds raised were used to provide teen programming as well as research. 

"I felt that donating my Bar Mitzvah funds was the least I could do to support her cause," said Ben Fogel, a Bar Mitzvah fund-holder at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba. "People in the same position that she was in will now greatly benefit because of her hard work and determination."  

Ethan Pollock, a Bar Mitzvah fund-holder at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, was a good friend of Kendra's. “It was an easy decision for me to make," he said. “'Kendra's Way' is a beacon of hope for sick children here in Manitoba and although she is no longer with us, her memory is permanently preserved with the teen room at CancerCare Manitoba.”   

Despite struggling through intense cancer treatments, Kendra’s concern was for those around her. "We chose to support Kendra’s 'Walk for Kids', because to us Kendra McBain embodies both courage, and strength," said Julie and Adam Yan, Bat and Bar Mitzvah fund-holders at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba. "Kendra epitomizes youth philanthropy and we could not be more proud of our choice to support Kendra’s dream of creating a teen room at CancerCare Manitoba."   

The 2nd annual "Walk for Kids" will take place on June 4th at St. John's Ravenscourt School.  

Establishing Bar and Bat Mitzvah funds at the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, enables you to support causes that are important to you.

For more information about Bar and Bat Mitzvah funds, click here.