Grab a Free Burger Wednesday, December 3 at Kaleidoscope Park in Frisco

Seventeen-year-old Lovejoy High School student Hunter Crowley survived childhood brain cancer. Now he runs his own food truck and on Wednesday, December 4, he’s serving burgers at Kaleidoscope Park in Frisco to shine a light on families who are struggling while caring for a child with cancer during the holidays.

Hunter is supporting Wipe Out Kids’ Cancer CEO Kris Cumnock, who will begin a 24-hour fast on Wednesday to raise awareness for families who are facing overwhelming medical bills, food insecurity, and financial crisis. While Kris isn’t eating, he wants others to enjoy a complimentary burger (to the first 50 people).

For many families, the holidays mean warm meals, laughter and time together. But for hundreds of North Texas parents whose children are fighting cancer, the season can bring unimaginable stress – hospital stays, mounting bills, and the heartbreaking question of how to keep the lights on while their child fights for life.

According to Wipe Out Kids’ Cancer (WOKC), one in three local families with a child battling cancer live at or below the poverty line – a reality that becomes even more painful during the holidays.

North Texans can help support local families enduring unimaginable stress this holiday season by providing a gift of $33 or more to WOKC before the end of the year at wokc.org/hope.

“When your child is fighting for their life, the last thing a parent should worry about is how to keep food on the table or the electricity turned on,” said Kris Cumnock, CEO of Wipe Out Kids’ Cancer. “Hope can’t take a holiday – it is essential to these families who are living a nightmare.”

Through its Family Assistance Program, WOKC provides direct, practical relief to families in crisis. The local non-profit has stepped in to meet urgent, real-world needs this year – paying for housing costs, groceries, gas and parking, utilities, hotel stays and even helping a family afford a cap and gown while their high school senior underwent treatment.

But as the cost-of-living rises, the need keeps growing. This season, WOKC is asking the community to come together to support every DFW family battling pediatric cancer. Each donation provides meaningful relief that allows parents to focus on what matters most, their child’s recovery.

“We’ve seen families sleeping in their cars in hospital parking lots,” Cumnock said. “Our message is simple: hope can’t take a holiday. Families shouldn’t face cancer or hunger, eviction or isolation, alone during the holidays.”

In addition to supporting families in crisis, WOKC provides Buddy Bags to every pediatric cancer patient admitted to a North Texas hospital. Each bag is carefully curated to meet the needs of newly diagnosed kids with cancer and their parent(s). The contents of the bag include toiletries, a cozy blanket pillow, dining gift cards for parents, as well as age-appropriate entertainment items for kids, such as an iPad and wireless headphones so patients can FaceTime friends and family or download schoolwork. Each of the bag’s 40 items has a specific role in easing the transition from home to hospital.

For over 45 years, WOKC has significantly impacted the pediatric cancer space by funding more than $13 million for innovative and novel childhood cancer research projects. The non-profit invests in cutting-edge pediatric cancer research projects.