New organization supports the fight against childhood cancer

Nicholls State University students brought a new organization to campus to help support the fight against pediatric cancer, one hat at time.

Love Your Melon is an apparel brand dedicated to giving a hat to children battling cancer. For every beanie sold by the organization, another beanie is donated to a child with cancer.  Love Your Melon has donated 51,264 hats to pediatric cancer patients since 2015. 

The organization was created by two college students from Minnesota with the idea of improving the lives of children during their fight against the disease. The idea spread fast and students from colleges all over the country began to get involved in the cause.

Sydney Amadee, senior nursing major from Vacherie, brought this organization to Nicholls this semester through the Love Your Melon Campus Crew Program.

“It’s very sad to say, but most people in our area either know or have heard about a child in Louisiana with cancer,” Amadee said. “There’s something about a child battling this terrible disease that pulls on all of our heart strings. I wanted to bring ‘Love Your Melon’ to our campus to give students and the surrounding communities the knowledge of how little funding pediatric cancer research receives.”

Love Your Melon headquarters approved for Nicholls to have their own crew on campus.  Amadee said this is “truly amazing” because they do not approve every school. There are currently 11,000 crew members on 740 college campuses across the country.

Twenty students are involved in the organization at Nicholls and are working to spread awareness on campus. Amadee said they encourage others to buy merchandise from the Love Your Melon website. When purchasing an item on loveyourmelon.com, the buyer can select “Nicholls State University” at checkout. The crew receives credits from the purchase which allows the crew to do more in the community to help kids battling cancer.

Love Your Melon crew recently participated in Phi Mu’s Dance Marathon charity event for Children’s Miracle Network. They are planning with the Pre-Medical Association to promote a table in the student union before finals. The intention is to be handing out candy canes to attract people to check out their display and ask any questions they may have about Love Your Melon. 

Amadee said when she becomes a nurse in the future, she hopes to work in the field of pediatric oncology.

“I had the opportunity to visit Children’s Hospital in New Orleans and meet children battling cancer,” Amadee said. “There is something about the joy they have, despite going through difficult and unimaginable circumstances, that makes me want to be a part of their journey. Love Your Melon gives me the opportunity to put a smile on their faces by donating beanies and hopefully decrease pediatric cancer through the support of nonprofit organizations.”

Love Your Melon initial goal was to donate 45,000 hats to children undergoing cancer treatment. As secondary goal, the organization envisioned to donate $1 million to pediatric cancer research and to support the children and their families. According to the organization, they have surpassed both goals, donating over 75,000 hats and $1.1 million. Love Your Melon also donates 50 percent of net proceeds from all the company’s sales to nonprofit partners.