What We Do ...
Hunting For The Cure is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that “Shares Smiles” with children fighting cancer through the great outdoors. We are a prayerful, faith-based, family-oriented organization with a deep desire to serve others. It is this calling to serve that led us to dedicate ourselves to supporting families with children battling cancer or in remission.
Before sharing what we do, it is important to understand the complexity of the fight and the daily struggles these families endure.
What most people do not realize is that when a family hears the words, “Your child has cancer,” their world is forever changed. What was once normal no longer exists, and a new normal slowly begins to take shape. Between treatments, scans, and doctor visits, families quickly discover that many things they once thought important are no longer so, while other matters that once required significant attention can wait.
Today, the majority of families rely on two incomes to make ends meet. When a child is diagnosed and begins treatment, it is often necessary for one parent to leave work to provide care. Household income is cut in half, yet monthly bills remain the same. In families with multiple children, the child who is sick receives the focus, attention, gifts, trips, and fundraising efforts, while siblings may unintentionally feel set aside. Families never intend this, but the sick child fighting for their life requires it.
The stress on families continues to grow, affecting them in every area: health concerns for their child, attention to siblings, finances, and emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. Sadly, this strain can also take a toll on marriages, with statistics showing that up to 70% of marriages face serious challenges during this journey.
Hunting For The Cure is a family-oriented organization that focuses on supporting the entire family when a child is diagnosed with cancer. We believe that when a child faces a diagnosis, the entire family is affected. Our mission is to serve families while sharing the joy of the outdoors through hunting and fishing adventures.
We provide children fighting cancer—and their siblings—with fully guided hunting and fishing experiences. Depending on individual needs, these adventures can be arranged in private or group settings. Hunting For The Cure covers all aspects of the adventure, including flights, lodging, meals, guides, hunting, filming, taxidermy, and even shipping harvested game home as food—completely free of charge. Through these experiences, we share God’s creation and the wonders of the great outdoors, creating moments we call “Sharing Smiles.”
Although each family is flown in for a one-time adventure, they are always welcome to return for annual group hunts. Since 2011, we have discovered that there is something profoundly therapeutic about families coming together, meeting others in similar circumstances, and forming a lasting support system. Children do not see each other differently, and parents find encouragement and friendship during and after treatment.
In addition to providing harvested game as food, in 2019 our board expanded our mission by partnering with Hunting For The Hungry, a program that collaborates with farmers, hunters, and meat processors to ship frozen beef, pork, chicken, and venison year-round to families in need. We understand that meat is often one of the largest grocery expenses for families, and we are committed to helping ease that burden.
Through every hunt, every meal, and every smile shared, Hunting For The Cure strives to make a lasting impact on families navigating the challenges of childhood cancer.
