Sudbury high school students kick off 30th annual Kids Caring for Kids Cancer Drive

Lockerby Composite School’s 30th Kids Caring for Kids Cancer Drive kicks off this month. The student-led initiative has raised more than $1.1 million since 1995

The long-running Kids Caring for Kids Cancer Drive by Lockerby Composite School in Greater Sudbury, Ont., is marking another major milestone this year.

Since the campaign started in 1995, $1,114,000 has been raised for pediatric cancer care. The funds have gone toward pediatric cancer care at the Shirley and Jim Fielding Northeast Cancer Centre at Health Sciences North.

The 2024 cancer drive raised $45,000, with the campaign reaching the $1 million mark in 2023.

Hundreds of students attended the pep rally on Wednesday to kick off the 30th anniversary of the event – which will see teams canvass door-to-door for donations later this month.

The pep rally is meant to encourage students to sign up and get involved.

The annual cancer drive was first created by the late Laura Cotesta while she was a student at Lockerby. She had been diagnosed with a rare form of spinal cancer and wanted to improve access to cancer care for other children.

Laura died shortly after she graduated in 1997, but her legacy continues to inspire thousands of students to raise money for the same cause she championed.

“Each year we try to spread the word and the kids just get more enthusiastic and more enthusiastic,” said Pina Cotesta, Laura’s mother.

“I would imagine that if this enthusiasm keeps on the way that it is in this school and in our community, we’re going to be here for a long time.”

“(Laura) has definitely left a big impact,” said Fia Delabbio, a student co-chair for the 2025 event.

“Her legacy really does carry on throughout this high school.”

“We could see that we can make an impact as teenagers. There’s not always a lot you can do as teenagers, but this is something that we can do to help our own community and kids,” said the other student co-chair, Ava Pagnutti.

The cancer drive committee at the school told CTV News that sometimes Grade 9 students are a little hesitant to join teams and take part in the evening out canvassing, but organizers insist going with friends helps and it is a good way to meet new people.

“It’s definitely such a fun experience and it’s a great way to get volunteer hours as well,” said Delabbio.

“It’s bigger than yourself, which I think it’s good for a lot of our teenagers to learn about and showing them ‘this is what we can do for our community,’” Pagnutti said.

Pina says there are some parents of current students who were involved in the very first cancer drive.

“There’s a lot of grandmas and grandpas that were parents that helped out during the first cancer drive and that just makes me proud because we are going through generations and generations for a common goal – to help kids in our community,” she said.

Lockerby students will head out collecting donations from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m. across Greater Sudbury on Oct. 30.