Max Love Project, Inc.

Helping SuperKids thrive against the odds with fierce foods, whole-body wellness strategies, and integrative medicine. MaxLove Project is a 501c3 nonprofit organization with a mission to increase the quality of life and reduce health risks for all children surviving cancer, both in treatment and beyond. We empower families fighting childhood cancers and related life-threatening conditions with quality of life care, fierce foods, whole-body wellness resources, education and research. We believe that true health starts when families are empowered to be active partners in their child’s healing.At MaxLove Project, we invest in hope. Today, nearly 80% of all children diagnosed with some cancers survive beyond 5 years. While this is great news for many, the fight for most is never over. Researchers now know that the treatments that save lives also increase later risks for serious, life-threatening illnesses. These health risks are lifelong, increase with age, and can result in early death. This is why we’re kickstarting our own wellness revolution, one specifically for kids and families fighting cancer and the lifelong effects of cancer and related life-threatening treatments. Inspired by SuperMax Wilford, a brain cancer fighting superhero, MaxLove Project is a volunteer-powered, grassroots nonprofit organization founded to help SuperKids thrive against cancer and life-threatening conditions. We believe that all kids should have full access to every cancer-fighting tool available, including excellent nutrition and therapeutic resources such as acupuncture, physical activity, and healing narratives.MaxLove Project’s programs and resources support families in the key areas of survivorship health. Each program focuses on several “super actions” for lifelong healthy survivorship. We are a community of dedicated change-makers who believe in the power of high quality integrative health care for all children.

At MaxLove Project, we invest in hope. Together, we're kickstarting our own thrive revolution, one specifically for kids fighting cancer and life-threatening illnesses. Our evidence-based Thrive Protocol -- anticancer nutrition, sleep, movement therapy, stress reduction, therapeutic arts, and community -- are the most essential components to an integrative complementary protocol to stand alongside standard treatment. We believe that these elements should be integrated into every cancer fighter's regimen. Our Thrive Protocol can help patients thrive against cancer, maintaining optimum health and wellbeing, exactly what's needed to withstand the challenges of treatment and build a great foundation for healthy survivorship. We are not oncologists, nutritionists, or scientists; we're parents who believe in the power of anticancer nutrition and integrative medicine. Our son Max was diagnosed in 2011 with a mixed-grade glioma originating from the brainstem. We knew that we needed to be full partners in his healing, and so we began to find out what things we had control over, and what things we could do. Food is one of these things. Through consultations, our own research, and trial and error, we developed a kid-friendly approach to anticancer nutrition and overall wellness. We look forward to sharing with you what's helped Max thrive as he's progressed down the challenging path of brain cancer treatment and survivorship. We are better together and we believe, as a community, we can help our kids and create a new pathway through treatment that fully includes whole-kid health and wellness. Our ultimate goal is to be able to broadly advocate for families so that these services may be offered to all children from within each and every hospital across the nation. Thank you for your interest in collaborating to build a new community of hope, helping our kids fight cancer and life-threatening illnesses at the hospital and at home. -- Audra & Justin, Max's Mom and Dad

Accomplishment 1 :Ohana Project Study. We are the only childhood cancer non-profit to have completed a children's hospital IRB-approved study that evaluates the feasibility of a comprehensive quality-of-life and preventive health intervention for parents of childhood cancer survivors. Using a rigorous design and evaluation process, we were able to demonstrate that our 12-week program was feasible and highly acceptable to parents, but that child preventive health behaviors and quality of life were significantly improved. We believe that this collaborative study with CHOC Children's Hospital provides the foundation for expanding the Ohana Project to all childhood cancer survivors and their families.Accomplishment 2:Teaching Kitchen Collaborative. In August of 2017 we convened a collaborative with four children's hospitals to pilot and study our hospital-based culinary medicine program. The hospitals are Children's Hospital of Orange County, University of Arizona Steele Children's Research Center, Children's Hospital of Alabama at UAB, and Willett Children's Hospital of Savannah. With a yearlong timeline, monthly calls, structured curriculum, and strong assessment tools we're working together to learn how to implement an innovative culinary medicine program in children's hospitals with diverse populations and varied resources. Once we review and share the data from this pilot feasibility study, this group will work together to develop phase II curriculum and will then be ready to scale and invite additional children's hospital partners and collaborators.** We do not have the space to enter in all of our accomplishments and goals with a 2,000 character limit on this form. Feel free to email us for this information at info@maxloveproject.org. 

NEEDS:Grant support for further Ohana Project research studies with new populations.Funding support for our pioneering online Ohana application. Funding support to expand our hospital-based culinary medicine program.  Two staff positions -- events manager and development director.

We serve families in southern California with local programs, events and initiatives as well as families across the nation in virtual programs, package mailings, consultations and support groups.

Hello, I am Audra D. Wilford, the founder of the MaxLove Project. I started the organization with my son, Max Wilford (“SuperMax”), after he began his fight against brain cancer over three years ago. We grew MaxLove Project as Max was in and out of the hospital, facing surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation. Today MaxLove Project is a volunteer-driven, grassroots non-profit organization helping “SuperKids” thrive against cancer and life-threatening conditions. MaxLove Project’s mission is to provide families fighting childhood cancers and life-threatening conditions with accessible, practical, and kid-friendly whole-body wellness. Since its inception in 2011, the MaxLove Project has raised more than $350,000 to support both research and care-based initiatives. A few examples of our programs to mobilize our communities to help families thrive against childhood cancers and life threatening illnesses are: Fierce Foods Academy, sponsored by The Honest Company -- cooking classes, farm visits, an online support group administered by a whole-foods based Registered Dietitian, full scholarships for families to access consultations with dietitians, Fierce Foods Kits (kickstarter kits), research publications, educational publications, videos, and podcasts. Love + Light SuperKit, sponsored by Cloud b -- This initiative helps children in critical care situations to access empowering narratives and the healing power of healthy sleep. Broth Bank, MaxLove Project teams up with chefs in Santa Ana to provide organic therapeutic healing broth to families in need in Southern California. Complementary & Integrative Medicine at CHOC Children's Hospital - MaxLove Project donated over $20,000 to the CAM Center at CHOC Children's this year, providing acupuncture and massage to all children accessing oncology and hematology care on an outpatient basis. Mobilizing kids to stand up to cancer: The MaxLove Project’s Loomonade Stand Challenge, co-sponsored by Rainbow Loom, has been an amazing opportunity for kids to create micro businesses to give back, raising both funds and awareness for the cause. Loomonade Stands have raised over $5,000 for MaxLove Project thus far and, more than that, have been a great source of empowerment, hope and service opportunities for participating kids around the world. Childhood cancer research: MaxLove Project has established a fund with the St. Baldrick's Foundation, the largest private funder of childhood cancer research in the nation, to fund research in pediatric cancers and nutrition. Building A Community of Hope: MaxLove Project has partnered with student veterans at Vanguard University and Saddleback College, initiating the Big Warriors for Little Warriors program, to help support military children fighting cancer.   

If there has ever been an organization that defines the term “passion project,” MaxLove Project is it. MaxLove is led by 100% volunteers who hold full-time day jobs and work tirelessly for MaxLove on nights and weekends. I have been a member of the MaxLove Board from the beginning. When Audra, who founded the organization, asked me to be a part of it, it was a no-brainer. The organization and its mission are extremely personal for me. Although I have not had a child battling cancer, I did lose a child shortly after his birth; and I watched his twin brother fight for his life in the NICU for 119 days before he was able to come home. I have felt the crippling pain of losing a child and the constant fear, stress, and helplessness that comes with watching a child with a life-threatening condition battle when the outcome is uncertain. Becoming part of an organization dedicated to helping empower families facing similar challenges was my opportunity to give back in a meaningful way. Beyond this, I became a part of MaxLove Project to stand beside one of my best friends as her son battles brain cancer, hold her hand, and let her know that I am with her and her family in this fight. What I did not count on when I joined the MaxLove Board was the profound reward that I would receive. I have seen people at their best, giving selflessly, tirelessly, and generously, without expecting anything in return. And I am inspired. Everyday. That inspiration is truly a gift. As an organization, I think our greatest strength is the passion and dedication of our leaders, particularly our Board members. Every single one of us is involved in the organization because we simply love it, the mission, the community we serve, and each other. Our Board meetings are electric. They often last four hours or more. Ideas flow endlessly – too many to ever be able to execute on, particularly given our current time and budget restraints. Despite our many strengths, MaxLove Project faces challenges; primarily time and money, which is somewhat of a chicken and egg scenario. Currently, we only have two people who work for the organization that get paid – two interns. Audra is the de facto executive director and the undisputed visionary. But she has a full-time job, two young children, and fits MaxLove Project into every other waking moment she has, for which she receives no remuneration. To be able to help MaxLove Project achieve its potential, we need Audra to work full-time for the organization. Unfortunately, we cannot afford to pay her so she can focus exclusively on MaxLove Project. That is, however, one of my primary goals. Continuing to ask people to work for free is not sustainable in the long run. We are attempting to address these challenges by identifying and generating additional revenue streams beyond donations, events, and our MaxLove Brand hat wear line, such as grants.-- Adrianne Marshack, Executive Board President (2015)