CHS teacher Anne Thomas has been going to the Light the Night walk for nine years, ever since her 14-year-old daughter Emma died of leukemia. Emma was fighting cancer for one and a half years.

“The type of leukemia my daughter had was very aggressive,” Thomas said. “They still have not found quite the right drug for that.”

Ever since Emma passed away, Thomas’s forum has taken on attending the Light the Night walk and raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Light the Night is a march that raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.  The society has been fighting cancer since 1949, and have raised 1.2 billion dollars for cancer research. They are the largest non-profit organization in the world dedicated to fighting blood cancers.

Thomas’s other daughter Hannah is an alum of the Kilgore forum, which has also been fundraising for the society. The Kilgore forum has  been raising more and more money every year. The forum usually raises 7,000 to 8,000 dollars. This year they raised over 10,000 dollars. Over the years they’ve raised a total of over 50,000 dollars.

“It’s an emotional evening bringing back a lot of memories,” Thomas said. “But it’s also nice to feel the support of the community.” All of the money raised goes to research for leukemia and lymphoma. New discoveries are being made more and more often towards helping kids with certain types of leukemia, and the survival rates are continuing to increase. “One day, no one will be dying from leukemia,” Thomas said.