This year, in the absence of a group sponsor for our yearly vehicle sticker, I decided to ask the young woman who designed our 2020 sticker to once again try her hand at developing an appropriate sticker for 2023. Her name is Ella Hardman, and if you know Ella, a senior at Hinsdale South High School, you know how talented she is beyond her ability to draw and paint. I called her dad Hugh, a fellow Lions Club member and asked him to speak to Ella regarding this challenge. I didn’t have to wait long before I received my answer, and after approving her design concept Ella set about to create our 2023 sticker.
What you may also want to know about Ella is that, besides her artistic talent, she has made an investment to community causes, and one of those causes, is the “Cancer Smashers” group, which coupled with the “H Foundation,” raises money for the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University. Ella wanted her design to emphasize the fight against a disease that impacts so many families, mine included. She provided us with such a beautiful design, I decided to hang it on my wall here at city hall. We sent her design to our printer, and we now have our 2023 sticker available here at city hall for a minimum donation of $3.00, with all proceeds going to the Cancer Smashers.
As many of us who have experienced a family member with cancer, when a loved one has this disease, family and loved ones join in their battle, because as Oprah states, with cancer, there is a need to “Surround yourself with only people who are going to lift you higher.” The Cancer Smashers and the H Foundation not only raise money for cancer research, they work to support those who are fighting cancer through their love and support. My family has felt this love and support, and placing this sticker on our windshield is a small way of saying thank you to groups such these in the battle against cancer. Ella Hardman and so many others have made a commitment to fighting cancer; your donation can be your way of joining in and fighting the battle of “smashing cancer.”