Gretchen Witt is the founder of Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds for pediatric cancer treatment research and development. When Gretchen’s son Liam was diagnosed with cancer in 2007 she felt compelled to make a difference, and in 2008 Cookies for Kids’ Cancer was launched. Utilizing over twenty-five years of PR and communications experience, Gretchen has flipped the script on how nonprofits operate, and Cookies for Kids’ Cancer’s grassroots fundraising events have contributed over 20 million dollars towards pediatric cancer research and have helped save countless lives. In this episode, we discuss Gretchen’s motivation for founding Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, the impact the organization has had so far, and how sometimes the best start for any new endeavor is to just go for it. 

Don’t miss this interview where we talk about:

• Gretchen’s career working in PR, and what it taught her about the importance of communications and what successful communications management looks like
• Her son Liam’s cancer diagnosis when he was two and a half years old, and how it changed Gretchen’s life forever 
• Where the idea for Cookies for Kids’ Cancer came from, and the story behind its first bake-a-thon where Gretchen and a team of volunteers baked 96,000 cookies and raised over 420,000 dollars to help fund cancer treatments
• The organization’s intentional design, and how Gretchen has found success in raising awareness for difficult topics like pediatric cancer by inviting people into the conversation in a cheerful and positive way 
• Finding the confidence to start something new, and that if there’s a dream you want to pursue or an idea you want to bring to life, why not give it a try?

Find Gretchen Witt:

www.cookiesforkidscancer.org
IG: @cookies4kids
Twitter: @GoodCookiesMom
LinkedIn: Gretchen Holt Witt

Follow Lydia:

www.lydiafenet.com
IG: @lydiafenet
LinkedIn: Lydia Fenet

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Recorded at The Newsstand Studios at Rockefeller Center.

Thank you for listening.