The Friends of Karen charity has a chief aim of providing emotional, financial and advocacy support to families of a child with cancer or another life-threatening illness, from diagnosis through treatment, for as long as they need. Friends of Karen were founded in 1978 by Sheila Petersen. A friend’s daughter, Karen, was terminally ill, and she wanted to come home from the hospital to live her final days surrounded by her family. Karen’s family’s insurance did not cover home care and her family could not afford the cost themselves. Sheila galvanized the community to help raise funds to enable Karen to remain at home.
When Karen died, Sheila established Friends of Karen as a resource for other families who had a child with a life-threatening illness. Since then, Friends of Karen has supported 5,000 children and their families. When siblings are counted, Friends of Karen has touched the lives of more than 11,800 children in the New York Tri-State area. To learn more on how you can help click below
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