As we have all experienced, almost everything changed in the middle of March of 2020.  Thankfully many things are returning to “normal” and that includes the 2022 running of the Boston Marathon!  

This month, on April 18, Joanne O’Connell will once again run the iconic Boston Marathon route in memory and in honor of her late son, Tim O’Connell.  This will be Joanne’s ninth marathon and the eighth time she will be running the Boston Marathon.

You can support Joanne’s run and all the good works of the Timothy O’Connell Foundation at www.timsteam.org.  Go to the EVENTS tab and click on the Boston Marathon.  Then click on the picture of Joanne from a previous Boston Marathon to make your donation.  As Joanne stressed, “All dollars donated make a difference. The Foundation donates all money raised to cancer-related causes. Because many fundraising efforts for the The Timothy O’Connell Foundation have been on hold or reduced over the last two years, our community’s financial support is more important than ever to help fund the mission of the Foundation.”

Following Tim’s specific wishes, the Foundation continues its support of Make-A-Wish. Tim and his family experienced the joy of a Make-A-Wish trip in December of 2007, to Disney World. Also following Tim’s specific wishes, the Foundation supports the Just For Sibs Program at Children’s Hospital Boston. The Just For Sibs Program supported Tim’s brothers - Brendan, Matt, and Chris - during Tim’s illness.  

“Tim understood the great impact of that support for his brothers and for the siblings of other sick children,” says Joanne.

The Foundation also directs funds to Camp Sunshine in Casco, Maine. The O’Connell Family enjoyed time together during an oncology week at Camp Sunshine just 10 weeks before Timmy passed away.  

“Tim loved the night he got to stay in a yurt with his brother Brendan and the other campers,” said Joanne.  

The family continues to benefit from and volunteer at Camp Sunshine bereavement programs for families who have lost children to disease.

The Foundation supports the groundbreaking works of the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber Cancer Institute, where Tim received such great care.  

“We desperately hope that, someday, this illness will be eradicated in children and adults,” shared Tim’ mother Joanne.  

To that end, the Foundation continues its financial support of a research project named for Tim at the University of Minnesota. Tim’s oncologist at Children’s Hospital Boston, Doctor Peter Gordon, is now at the University of Minnesota. He is studying the FLT-3 mutation that so impacted the course of Tim’s cancer, Acute Myeloid Leukemia. And, the Foundation continues to support the National Bone Marrow Donor Program. Tim was the recipient of an almost perfectly matched bone marrow donation from a stranger.

The Foundation takes great pride in its Scholarship Program. To date, over $125,000 has been donated to Holliston seniors in high school who plan to study in medical fields.  

“We are thrilled to help students become doctors, nurses, physical and occupational therapists, pharmacists, researchers, and other caregivers. It is an honor to be able to give back to the community in this way,” said Joanne.

The Timothy O’Connell Foundation has raised over $1 million dollars over the last 13 years. Please help further the mission of the Foundation by making a donation in support of Joanne’s run at www.timsteam.org.