Recipients of Landon’s Smile
Spreading Landon’s smile to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Philadelphia on June 26, 2023.
On Monday, June 26th, the Landon Vargas Foundation brought a special delivery of 10 ipads, Caregiver Bags for every family, and smile bags for every patient and sibling upon admittance. These bags are full of helpful supplies for each families’ stay at the Ronald McDonald House. This was made possible by the great effort of John Trainor and Mike Moser when they raised money for the foundation by running 48 miles in just 48 hours. We are so grateful to them and all those who donated to support their efforts. Together we are making a difference in lives of those battling an illness.
Spreading Landon’s smile on International Childhood Cancer Day, February 15th, 2023 to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia…
On Wednesday, February 15th, in honor of remembering children battling cancer on International Childhood Cancer Day, the foundation made a special delivery to CHOP. We restocked their supply of Smile Bags, we also brought along loads of other items for the kids and all of your donations from our supportive community. We know that the Phillies Phanatic Pillow Pets and the lego sets will be the biggest hit!
Spreading Landon’s smile to St. Christopher’s Hospital and Nemour’s Hospital for Children with our LANDON HOLIDAY SHOP!
A GREAT BIG THANK YOU to our community of donors for all their donations to help us deliver our Holiday Shop of gifts to our hospitals. We were also able to help five families who recently received a childhood cancer diagnosis as well as purchase new ipads for oncology child life. To all who donated, sorted, wrapped, wrote tags, an put bags together, we thank you all!
Spreading Landon’s smile to two year old Aysa, in partnership with Angel Flight East.
The Landon Vargas Foundation is proud to partner with Angel Flight East. AFE provides free transportation to qualified patients and their families by arranging flights to distant medical facilities. Aysa, a two year old cancer patient and her family traveled from Erie, PA to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for treatment. We were so excited to provide a care package with lots of toys and of course our Miles of Smiles Bag to Aysa and her family.
Spreading Landon’s smile to John DiCicco.
This past May, The Foundation was able to bring some smiles to the DiCicco Family. Ten year old, John DiCicco is bravely fighting his cancer diagnosis. With the amazing help of John Trainor and Mike Moser who raised money with their weekend running challenge, the foundation was able to provide a backyard water slide , tent, outdoor projector, movie screen, and games for the backyard. We were also able to send them to Hershey, PA for a two night stay at Hershey Lodge along with two day park passes to Hershey Park. Check out the smiles in the pictures below.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania, Voorhees, New Jersey Branch.
This summer of 2020, the foundation made a delivery to the Voorhees, New Jersey location for patients at Children’s Hospital of Pennsylvania. With the support of our Landon Vargas Foundation Community of donors, we were able to delivery more Smile Bags along with an updated movie collection.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to the moms and dads of childhood cancer patients at Saint Christopher’s Hospital for Children for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.
The inpatient children at St. Christopher’s Hospital made beautiful cards for their moms and dads. The foundation purchased, wrapped, and dropped off the gifts for them to give their incredible mothers and fathers on their special day this past spring. The patients were so excited to surprise their parents! Thank you to our community of supporters who help us put these smiles on these little warriors and their parents.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to the Music and Art Therapy Departments at DuPont Nemours Children’s Hospital as well as to the teenage oncology patients April 8th, 2022.
With the determination and hard work of John Trainor helping to spread our mission at the foundation, we were able to purchase three keyboards, tons of air pods, new bluetooth speakers, and many headphones to the music therapy department at Dupont. We also delivered fifty packs of crayola markers, and teen coloring books. Twenty “Miles of Smiles” bags for the teenage oncology patients were delivered as well. If you could have seen the face of the Music Therapy Teacher when the special delivery arrived, it would warm your heart just like Landon’s smiled did when you would see him. Thank you to John Trainor and Mike Moser and all those who supported them in their run to raise money for the Landon Vargas Foundation. Together we are making a difference.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Saint Christopher’s Hospital March 2022.
With the support of the Landon Vargas Foundation community, we were able to purchase eight much needed brand new flatscreen televisions for the children’s oncology floor along with teenage “Miles of Smiles Bags.” We cannot thank our community of supporters enough for helping us spread our mission.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Teenage, School-Aged, and Infants at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, February, 2022.
Today we restocked our Miles of Smiles bags to CHOP! Our smile bags are given by nurses to children at the time of their diagnosis and at the start of their treatment. The purpose of our bags is to make a direct positive impact on these warriors as quickly possible upon hearing devastating new of a cancer diagnosis. Our bags are filled with items aimed at easing anxiety, creating calmness and mindfulness, and providing some fun activities to pass the time during long hospital stays. Thankful for our community of supporters!
Bringing Miles of Smiles this Holiday Season of 2021 to St. Christopher’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Nemours/Alfred I duPont Hospital for Children, and Penn State Children’s Hospital in Hershey Hospital.
The month of December was a busy one for the Landon Vargas Foundation. We delivered tons of games and Miles of Smiles Bags to the oncology patients at Hershey Hospital. Our first time spreading Landon’s smile to these patients in Hershey, PA. For the second year in a row, the Landon Holiday Shop was a huge success. The children at St. Christopher’s and Dupont Hospital were thrilled to have the gifts they picked out to give their loved ones and were surprised to see extra gifts were added in their gift bags for them. Thank you to everyone who helped us make this happen. All those who donated, shopped, and wrapped the gifts, we are so thankful for you. Your kindness and generosity puts smiles on the faces of those children battling cancer and their loved ones . We are forever grateful.
Spreading Landon’s smile to Beckett…
This past September, 2021, the foundation delivered some smiles to science loving warrior Beckett and his little brother. Beckett and his mom spent the majority of August in the hospital. Currently, Beckett is home and has started another round of treatments. We provided some things to keep him busy at home. Please continue to pray for Beckett and his family.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children…
On August 4th, 2021 , The Landon Vargas Foundation delivered more Miles Of Smiles Bags and tons of board games for the childhood oncology patients at DuPont Hospital for Children located in Delaware. This hospital is near and dear to our hearts, as Landon received great love and care from the doctors and nurses when he was being treated for his cancer. The board games were donated by Landon’s eighth grade classmates as a service project for the end of their school year. A great BIG THANK YOU goes out to Landon’s classmates and their parents for this very generous donation. Thank you to those who continue to support the mission of the foundation. With their support we are able to put smiles on the faces of these very brave warriors who face their cancer diagnosis with such courage.
Spreading Landon’s smile to Caleb…
The foundation had the privilege of bringing Landon’s smile to Caleb and his precious family. Caleb is battling Leukemia. We were honored to bring them some activities to enjoy in their backyard, to get to spend the afternoon with them, to see their smiles, hear their laughter, learn about their favorite things, and listen as they excitedly expressed what they were looking forward to this summer. Being with them was so special. Hopefully, they will have may belly laughs and magical memories as they enjoy their backyard activities.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to children battling cancer at St. Christoper’s Hospital of Philadelphia…
This past Christmas season, with support from our donors and Landon as our guide, we were able to provide St. Christopher’s Children’s Hospital oncology patients with gifts that the children handpicked for their loved ones. We wrapped and delivered each item along with some gifts for the children themselves. We were also able to bring smiles to many families by providing holiday gifts to their childhood cancer warrior and their siblings. Lastly, we made a donation towards childhood cancer research in Landon’s name. We are so grateful to all our donors for their unending kindness and support of the foundation’s journey.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Danica…
This holiday season, the foundation had the honor of delivering some very special gifts for under the tree for Danica and her siblings. Danica is a four year old girl battling brain cancer. To help ease the stress of the holidays, we were happy to help with gifts for the Christmas Holiday. Her parents were so excited and amazed at all the gifts she and her siblings received. We are so grateful to all those who donate to the Landon Vargas Foundation so that we can bring these beautiful smiles to the faces of those children battling cancer.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to the National Institutes of Health….
We traveled to the National Institutes of Health to bring them our “Miles of Smiles” bags. We had made this trip with Landon for treatments many times. When we arrived at the gate, the security guard who greeted us and checked us in, was named ….??….. you guessed it LANDON, thinking that is a sure sign that our Little Man is right beside us smiling brightly.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Tommy …
The Landon Vargas Foundation had the pleasure of delivering special gifts to Tommy and his sister. Tommy is a brave warrior who is battling Ewing Sarcoma. Tommy received an outdoor movie screen with a projector, a speaker, the game Jenga, along with other toys as well as one of our Miles of Smile’s Bags, and our new foundation T-shirt. His sister even received some crafts. We know Tommy’s road has not been easy but we hope these gifts provide some happiness and special time spent with his family.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Saint Christopher’s Hospital of Philadelphia…
A special delivery of seven brand new Playstation 4 Systems were delivered to the oncology unit at St.Christopher’s Hospital of Philadelphia. We are so happy to provide some fun games for the children at the hospital while receiving treatment.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Elle...
The Landon Vargas Foundation made a special delivery to five year old Elle. Elle is bravely fighting a pediatric brain cancer called Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma. Elle and her siblings received bean bags, cozy blankets, slippers, an outdoor movie screen with a projector, our Miles of Smiles Bags and more. Elle, her older sister Ava and younger brother, Mason all loved their special gifts. Landon’s smile continues to bring joy to families who are dealing with a childhood cancer diagnosis.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia…
On August 28, 2020, the foundation delivered our Miles of Smiles Bags to the inpatient oncology patients at CHOP. These bags which were made with love were filled with play-doh, socks, fidget spinner, stress balls, word searches, coloring books, playing cards, a cozy pillow, etc… These bags were filled with love for those who are suffering from a pediatric cancer diagnosis. Landon loved to receive fun items to help him pass the time in the hospital. We hope to spread Landon’s smile with others battling childhood cancer.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Lilly…
The Landon Vargas Foundation granted more smiles in honor of Landon to Lilly and her family. Lilly had been battling neuroblastoma and has recently had a relapse. We wanted to support Lilly and her courageous fight by bringing some happiness to her especially during these trying times. Lilly lives with her mom, Nicole and her older brother, Tyler. The foundation delivered some fun items for the outdoors for Lilly! Some of the items included a water sprinkler, a brand new bike, and a chair with an umbrella attached to it. Her older brother, Tyler even received a beautiful wooden bat from LV Lumber. Check them out at lvlumberbats.com another organization which was started in honor of Landon to support childhood cancer.
Bringing Miles of Smiles to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children…
On June 20th, the Foundation made a very special delivery of our first batch of Miles of Smiles Bags to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children located in Philadelphia. Our bags went to the oncology patients. We want to thank Samantha Craig, the Certified Life Specialists for working with us to get these bags delivered to the patients. Due to the covid 19 pandemic, we could only drop off the bags at the front door but we know these bags where bringing lots of smiles to the faces of patients at St. Christopher’s. We will continue to put together more bags so we can spread Landon’s smile to all the cancer patients.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Vincent…
The Landon Vargas Foundation brought some Miles of Smiles to a very handsome young boy named Vincent. He is battling a form of brain cancer called ATRT. The foundation dropped off some outdoor items for Vincent and his sister Mina. Some of the items were an outdoor tent, a sliding board, outdoor chalk paint kit, a mini rollercoaster, and our Miles of Smiles bag filled with treats for Vincent and his sister.
Spreading Miles of Smiles to Maddie…
We were honored to have had the opportunity to sit down with Maddie and her family. Maddie is a 12 year old girl and currently in 6th grade. She was diagnosed with Leukemia when she was 7 years old. Maddie recently had a relapse and has started on her current treatment. Maddie’s mother, Christine and father, Hap along with her sisters Abby and Isabelle are big support systems for Maddie. Since the coronavirus pandemic, we have been staying safe at home. As a result of the pandemic, The Landon Vargas Foundation decided to provide some outdoor fun for Maddie and her family. On June 9th, the foundation delivered a custom made corn hole game, spikeball, a flowerpot painting kit, sidewalk paint chalk, a fire pit for the family with ingredients to makes smores, and three Miles of Smiles Bags for Maddie and her sisters filled with treats.
