September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. The gold ribbon is the official symbol. For one month, the country pays a little more attention to pediatric cancer.

If you have been wanting to support children in active cancer treatment, CCAM is a great month to act. Here are 15 specific, real, tangible ways to help, ranging from $5 to whatever you are able to give. None of them are abstract. All of them connect to actual children in actual treatment.

The 15

1. Sponsor a Joy Package ($25)

Each Joy Package goes directly to a child in active treatment at one of our four partner hospitals. The bag contains sensory toys, art supplies, and a handwritten note. The child receives it on a clinic day.

2. Sponsor a gas card ($50)

Cancer families drive to clinic three or four times a week during heavy treatment phases. A $50 gas card covers roughly 2-3 weeks of clinic drives. It is one of the most practically useful gifts we deliver.

3. Sponsor a grocery card ($100)

Cancer families' grocery budgets stretch in unfamiliar ways. A child who suddenly only wants three foods on chemo. A parent who has stopped cooking. A grocery card softens the food load for a week.

4. Sponsor a Newly Diagnosed Family Bag ($150)

A bag delivered to a family in the first week of their child's diagnosis. Contains practical items, sensory toys, a small comfort piece for the sibling, and a guide that helps the family get through diagnosis week.

5. Donate items from our Amazon Wishlist

Our Amazon Wishlist is curated for the items we need right now. Pop-its. Sensory balls. Crayons. Sticker books. The items ship directly to us. We distribute them through our hospital partners.

6. Host a toy drive

Family, workplace, school, faith community, sports team. A toy drive in September coincides with CCAM and feeds our biggest distribution months (October through December). Visit maxwellstoybox.com/host-a-toy-drive.

7. Shop Maxwell's Toy Shoppe

Every purchase at Maxwell's Toy Shoppe funds Joy Packages for children in active cancer treatment. Buy a birthday gift for your own child. Fund a toy for another child.

8. Sponsor a child's full year of Joy Packages ($300)

Cover the cost of a Joy Package for one child for each month of active treatment. Some families receive a Joy Package every month for a year or more. Sponsoring a year of Joy Packages is one of the most direct gifts you can give.

9. Sponsor a hospital toy closet restock ($500)

Help us restock one of our partner hospital toy closets for a full month. Includes sensory toys, art supplies, books, and items for every age group on the pediatric oncology floor.

10. Give monthly as a Sustainer ($25 to $100/month)

Monthly support is the most reliable form of help for our year-round operations. A Sustainer gift means a Joy Package every month, all year, without a fundraising push.

11. Share our content

Sharing our blog posts, social media, and CCAM content with your community helps us reach more cancer families, more donors, and more partners. Sharing is a free way to support pediatric cancer awareness.

12. Wear the gold ribbon, on purpose

Pick up a gold ribbon pin from the Maxwell's Toy Box shop or any pediatric cancer organization. Wear it through September. When people ask, tell them about pediatric cancer realities. The conversation is part of the awareness.

13. Send a card to a cancer family you know

If you know a cancer family, send them a card during CCAM. Not asking for anything. Just acknowledging them. It is one of the most meaningful gifts you can give a family who is already navigating treatment.

14. Volunteer with us

Maxwell's Toy Box is 100% volunteer-run. We need help packing Joy Packages, sorting toy drive donations, coordinating hospital deliveries, and writing thank-you notes. If you are local to Chicagoland, reach out at maxwellstoybox.com/volunteer-with-us.

15. Talk to a child about pediatric cancer

If you have children in your life, tell them about pediatric cancer in age-appropriate ways. Tell them about the kids who go to clinic. Tell them about Maxwell's Toy Box. Tell them they can help. Childhood cancer awareness starts with kids learning, gently, that other kids in their world are navigating treatment.

What CCAM is and is not

CCAM is

A specific national month set aside for raising awareness, increasing research funding, supporting families, and recognizing the impact of pediatric cancer on children, families, and communities.

CCAM is not

A pity month. A guilt month. A one-and-done month. A reason to only think about pediatric cancer in September.

We say this often at Maxwell's Toy Box. September is the month the country pays attention. We are here the other eleven months too.

A note from us

If you do any of the 15 things above this September, thank you. The kids we serve will benefit. The families we partner with will benefit. The hospitals we restock will benefit.

If you do them in October, November, January, or any other month of the year, thank you even more. Year-round support is the heart of everything we do.

Dina
Mom of Max | Founder, Maxwell’s Toy Shoppe
Childhood Cancer Advocate 💛

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Join our movement to support children battling cancer and their families, year-round:

🎁 Donate to deliver toys to children during long cancer treatment days
🧸 Buy a toy from Maxwell’s Toy Shoppe, and 100% of proceeds support children in treatment
🎗️ Join Maxwell’s Circle of Heroes as a monthly donor to ensure families receive ongoing care