The winter of 2019 will go down as the snowiest on record in Southeast Minnesota. By March most of us were tired of making weather history, but that wasn’t the case for two industrious nine year olds. Best buds Benny Timpane and Landon Eckhoff were determined to turn thigh-high snow into fun by helping families who are dealing with childhood cancer.
Benny Timpane and Landon Eckhoff preparing for the big event
Christa and Hannah Keehr
The boys knew Hannah Keehr, a Brighter Tomorrows, Go for the Gold honorary family member before she was diagnosed with neuroblastoma. As she battled through treatment, their friendship deepened and when her scans cleared up they all attended daycare together at a facility run by Benny’s mom. Through all of this, the courageous Tiny Warrior left a lasting impression on the boys, which has motivated them to volunteer at Brighter Tomorrows events.
Recently, when they learned that another Brighter Tomorrows family member, Nathan Herber (a cousin of their friends Nolan and Isaac Frank) was fighting Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, they stepped up, or in this case slid down.
(left to right) Landon Eckhoff, Nolan Frank, Benny Timpane, Isaac Frank showing support.
Because they love playing outside and can’t get enough snow, Benny and Landon organized a sledding party fundraiser for Brighter Tomorrows on March 9th. When they set this date, they had no idea that another storm might hit, but even if it did, not even a blizzard would slow them down. They invited neighbors, friends, and relatives to slide down their backyard hill which for this special event, was iced down and converted into a luge run. Even though snow and ice was forecast that day, Mother Nature was on the side of these determined kids, and the weather held off just long enough for the sledding party to be a success, which thrilled Benny. “After the event I felt excited to give the money to Brighter Tomorrows. Brighter Tomorrows helped our friend Hannah and others. It was lots of fun to plan.”
Liz Canan, President and Co-Founder of Brighter Tomorrows, is so proud. “Our families are so grateful to Benny and Landon and everyone who came out to support Brighter Tomorrows. They are amazing. Thank you!“
Everyone who came out had a wonderful time, and before the snow and ice fell once again, Benny and Landon had already raised about $700 for Brighter Tomorrows, which was both a learning and rewarding experience for Landon. “I have heard about cancer, and I have heard about how bad it was and I wanted to help. Our fundraiser was successful and fun. I didn’t think we would raise all that money.”
Andy Herber, Nathan’s father, attended the event and praised the young organizers. “Those boys are fantastic, on behalf of our family, we send them a heartfelt thank you.” We are all thinking of Nathan, and a few weeks ago, Andy posted on his CaringBridge page, “Early this week Nathan underwent labs, echocardiogram, and another CT scan of chest…..His ECHO showed his heart remains in great shape despite the hell he has traversed. His CT scan showed continued lung healing and no signs of lymphoma recurrence.”
Helping with Go for the Gold, and taking promotional photos, from left to right, Christian Bos, KAAL anchor and Go for the Gold emcee Rachel Wick, Nathan Herber
And what about our Tiny Warrior, Hannah?
She continues her fight, setting an example for all of us. Her mom, Christa, passed this along to the boys. “I’m truly inspired by Benny and Landon — they are such amazing kids, and they exemplify what the community of people who support and surround a cancer family are truly like.”
If you would like to contribute to Brighter Tomorrows to help our families, here is a donation link to our big annual fundraiser, our Go for the Gold race on June 29th. We are pretty sure that it won’t be snowing then, but even if it did, that won’t matter to Benny and Landon.
Written by Ron Petrovich, who serves on the board of Brighter Tomorrows.
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