Way to Go! Ward Melville student named St. Baldrick's ambassador
Ward Melville High School junior Alexa Moore. Credit: Three Village Central School District
A Ward Melville High School student who survived a rare form of childhood cancer has been named one of five ambassadors nationwide this year for the St. Baldrick's Foundation.
Alexa Moore, a junior at the East Setauket school, was diagnosed at the age of 3 with clear cell sarcoma of the kidney and underwent treatment that included a stem cell harvest, blood transfusions and eight radiation therapies. She has been in remission for 13 years.
As an ambassador, Moore will share her story to inspire others to get involved with the foundation.
"Childhood cancer doesn't stop," Moore, 16, said. "As a cancer survivor myself, I feel it is important to continue to spread awareness and to raise money to find a cure for this horrific disease. Together, we can all make a difference."
Moore has been raising cancer awareness since the age of 4, when she began speaking about her battle to students in the Sachem Central School District, where her mother, Debbie, is a special-education teacher.
She also organized a head-shaving fundraiser two years ago at R.C. Murphy Junior High School in Stony Brook that raised more than $12,000 and is currently coordinating a virtual head-shaving event for May.
Moore's other activities include being a member of her school's Student Government Board and volunteering with the nonprofit Strength for Life.
— MICHAEL R. EBERT
Michael R. Ebert is an education researcher and has worked for Newsday in various capacities since 2003. He was part of an 11-person team named as 2008 Pulitzer Prize finalists for investigative coverage of the LIRR's platform safety issues.
