Childhood cancer nonprofit given $30,000, dedicated mural

Jun. 3—The 2022 class of Ascension Leadership Academy chose The Mighty Millie Foundation, a nonprofit created by local Marietta residents Nick and Claire Mracek, as the recipient of a community service campaign that ran until June 2. Volunteers from Ascension Leadership Academy raised more than $30,000 in 16 days for the Mighty Millie Foundation with their fundraising efforts.

The local nonprofit was founded after the Mraceks' daughter, Millie Mracek, was diagnosed with pediatric cancer in 2020.

"My daughter passed away just over a year ago from pediatric cancer that we were beating and then all of a sudden the treatment wasn't working. And having been in that position, you can't unknow what we have learned," Claire Mracek said.

The Marietta residents use their nonprofit to create "small moments of big joy" for children fighting cancer, spread awareness for the disease and fund research that will provide safer and more effective treatment, according to the couple. The foundation started off with a fundraising and awareness effort in Marietta called the Mighty Millie Popsicle Project, in which the Mraceks donate nourishing popsicles to pediatric cancer hospitals.

"Our daughter loves popsicles. Oftentimes, they are a source of nourishment because when a child is going through chemotherapy, everything about their appetite changes," Claire Mracek said. "So that's what we started doing as a family was donating popsicles really on our own."

At first, close family and friends hosted popsicle stands in their neighborhoods and driveways. Then, friends of friends joined the project. Now, the popsicle project has even reached Alabama, Florida, Iowa and California, the Mraceks said. Each stand's proceeds go towards buying more popsicles that are donated to the kids in pediatric cancer hospitals. In honor of the young Mracek, almost 17,000 popsicles have been donated to 11 pediatric cancer centers across the southeastern U.S.

Local businesses in Marietta have also shown their support for the Mraceks' cause during September, which is childhood cancer awareness month.

"Here locally, [the owners of] Good Kitchen and Market... have become friends of ours, because they heard the story. Last September, they, in their business, every Saturday hosted a popsicle stand," Claire Mracek said. "They organized teams of families to come in on Saturdays and run the popsicle stands. So we get some really creative ways, which I think is the beauty of that — it can be really simple, truly at the end of your driveway."

Popsicle stands have been the Mraceks' main source of fundraising; however, donations like the one from Ascension Leadership Academy will allow the foundation to fund more pediatric cancer research and donate even more popsicles, hopefully to more cancer centers, according to the couple.

"This donation is important, because it's really setting the tone for the organization," Nick Mracek said. "That we hope to have this type of money at the very start is impactful and allows us to do so many things we have planned and push them forward."

According to the Mraceks, their daughter was only 3 years old when she was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma. The little girl fought her disease with positivity and bravery, however the treatments were exhausting and the options to fight her cancer were limited, her parents said. The Mraceks are especially passionate about funding pediatric cancer research to find more modern, less toxic ways of treating all types of pediatric cancers.

"We really hope to be able to continue in the research aspect, and the only way that's going to happen is with sizable, continued large donations," Claire Mracek said.

The Mraceks thanked the Marietta and the Cobb community for supporting their foundation and honoring Millie with popsicle stands in their neighborhoods and communities when they were just starting out as a small nonprofit.

"The community is... the first part of our mission. And we're so thankful for everyone here in Marietta and our friends and family that live all over Cobb that have... reached out to us," Nick Mracek said. "This world, this childhood cancer world is not necessarily well-known. It will need more awareness in order to make change."

The Ascension Leadership Academy's community service project raised awareness for childhood cancer with an event held on June 1. On June 1, according to a news release, a large public mural was painted by Ascension volunteers and local artists in honor of Millie Mracek and to bring attention to The Mighty Millie Foundation and kids battling pediatric cancer. The mural is pictured on the external wall of Howdy ATL Café across the street from the Atlanta Zoo in Grant Park.

As The Mighty Millie Foundation gains awareness and spreads joy, the Mraceks said their strength and inspiration to keep going comes from their valiant daughter.