Shield 23 Foundation is a non-profit organization that raises funds for and gifts funds to firefighters battling cancer and the families that stand beside them. Our mission goals are: financial assistance, peer support, and increasing awareness.
Fundraising
Funds raised support our goals of defraying the cost of cancer treatment and care for the firefighter, and assisting with associated necessary and proper monetary needs of the family. We aim to alleviate some of the financial stress incurred during a firefighter’s battle with cancer, allowing their family to stand beside them with less worry about medical and household bills, and easing limits and changes to daily life for the firefighter and their loved ones.
Giftings of Financial Assistance
Shield 23 Foundation’s Giftings of Financial Assistance are customized to each firefighter and their family’s needs and can be used to offset such burdens as:
- Costs of Medical Care not Covered by Insurance
- Adjunct Support Services such as Counseling and related Wellness Care
- Transportation & Travel; Loss of Income
- Household Bills & Expenses
- Childcare
- Meals
- Family Member Activities
- Sports & Extracurriculars
Peer Support
Peer Support, for the firefighter battling cancer and the family standing beside them, can be a critical tool in coping with the impacts of learning of a cancer diagnosis and the treatment of cancer. Shield 23 Foundation is working to create a program that will provide an opportunity for a firefighter battling cancer to be matched up with another firefighter who has experienced that journey, and is volunteering their time and support to offer a unique perspective that only a fellow brother or sister in the fire service would understand. We will also offer the same matching, as appropriate, for spouses/significant others, children and even co-workers/friends, to be able to speak with others who have walked in their shoes, and can offer peer-based comfort and support. Referrals for community support resources will be available as well.
Increasing Awareness
To increase awareness is to expand the public’s understanding of the impact of job-related cancer in the fire service, as well as to encourage education and cancer risk prevention practices within the fire service. Shield 23 Foundation offers links and guidance to resources for education, research, support, legislation, and more.