ESD Sophomores ‘Finish the Fight’ Against Blood Cancers

Three Episcopal School of Dallas sophomores led a 33-person team to raise $128,310 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Clara Tolleson, Ella Floyd, and McKenzie Clancy created the winning team, Finish the Fight, with friends from ESD, Jesuit, and Parish as part of LLS’s Student Visionaries of the Year — a philanthropic leadership development program where high-school leaders work to raise money for LLS while honing public speaking, marketing, and project management skills.

“We learned the value of perseverance,” Floyd said. “Our team sent hundreds of emails and scheduled meetings with the goal of securing corporate partnerships. It wasn’t easy hearing no, and it happened a lot — more often than we liked — but we didn’t give up and were so grateful any time we were told yes. It made us all work harder and think creatively.”

The trio led their seven-week campaign in honor of heroes and loved ones affected by leukemia and blood cancer, such as Floyd’s cousin who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia shortly after turning 3 and is now in remission, happy and healthy.

Tolleson worked in honor of her late grandfather, who had blood cancer.

LLS’s mission is to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and myeloma while working to improve the quality of life of patients and their families.

“Our ultimate goal is to educate the community [and] help fund cutting-edge research and life-saving cures for blood cancer,” Tolleson said. “We are so appreciative of this opportunity to have a meaningful, compassionate impact on others. We also want to thank everyone who has donated and helped us raise the money we received. We couldn’t have done it without them.”