A SHOUT OUT TO OUR VOLUNTEERS

J.J. Duncan and her family turned a time of tremendous grief after losing her 11-year-old son, Mason, to leukemia, into a mission to advocate for pediatric cancer patients and the mission of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). Prior to her son Mason’s diagnosis, J.J. was actively involved with LLS as a Team in Training participant, quickly becoming an integral member of Los Angeles’s tight-knit TNT community. Following Mason’s diagnosis and treatment, J.J. continued to actively participant and served as the TNT Executive Leadership Committee Co-Chair. In this role, J.J. spoke at Patient and Community Outreach Education programs and was featured as a mission speaker at Greater Los Angeles Region events.

J.J.’s involvement has expanded to the national level as she currently serves as a member of LLS’s Pediatric Advocacy Committee as well as the California Advocacy Committee. Giving tirelessly her time, J.J. shares her family’s story through video, written LLS reports, and in-person legislative meetings. She was a keynote speaker for the first Dare to Dream Summit and was central in the effort to highlight Dare to Dream as a major legislative priority for the Office of Public Policy.

J.J. 's passion for LLS’s mission earned her the award of LLS Advocate Ambassador of the Year in the spring of 2023 and the OPP Volunteer Award in 2023. J.J.’s fight to end blood cancer has also extended beyond work with LLS, as J.J. and her wife have started the Not Today Cancer Foundation in honor of Mason. The Foundation’s flagship event is an annual 5k run/walk to raise funds for pediatric cancer. The 2023 5k included over 700 participants and raised more than $50,000. For her longstanding commitment and outstanding efforts, in honor of her son Mason, J.J. Duncan receives the 2024 President's Award.

The prestigious LLS President’s Award represents our top honor and is given to an individual who has shown excellence in making substantive transformational impact at LLS. From bringing forward national business development opportunities to LLS or leading the way to groundbreaking scientific discoveries, this person has gone above and beyond, making the greatest cumulative impact on the Mission during their time volunteering with LLS.

Following his beloved daughter’s brave battle with leukemia, Gurshaman Bawja chose to honor her memory by championing the mission of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). Working tirelessly to raise funds in his community, attend events and engage his personal network, Gurshaman and his Light the Night team, raised nearly $300K over the past two years.

Gurshaman is passionate about The Dare to Dream Project, often serving as a mission speaker at community events and as an LLS advocate in his Texas community on pediatric blood cancer. Gurshaman’s passion for his daughter’s legacy inspires him as a member of the Texas Advocacy Committee, where he meets with other advocates from around the state. Gurshaman and his wife have served as LLS representatives at the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, urging federal lawmakers to fund pediatric research. A natural storyteller, Gurshaman became the point person for local in-district meetings with members of Congress from the State of Texas. Gurshaman also donates his time traveling to Washington, D.C. to advocate for LLS.

Gurshaman continues to share his daughter’s story and invite others in his community to join the fight to end blood cancer. He looks forward to rolling out the Texas Advocacy Committee and he and his wife are setting up a scholarship foundation in their daughter’s name for young women interested in engineering. For his passionate advocacy for LLS, coupled with his kindness and great empathy, LLS is thrilled to award the 2024 de Villiers Family Legacy Award to Gurshaman Bawja.

The de Villiers Family Legacy Award is given in honor of Rudolph and Antoinette de Villiers’ son Robert. The de Villiers were the visionaries who founded the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in Robert’s memory. This award recognizes an individual who has worked tirelessly to raise funds and influence policy with a passion and effort that matches that of the de Villiers’ family. The recipient has advanced the overall mission of LLS by impacting their community through their leadership and commitment. 

As a Hematologist/Oncologist specializing in lymphoma and the Chief of the Division of Blood Disorders at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Dr. Matthew Matasar takes his work as an advocate for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) to new heights. From serving on the Board of Trustees for the Long Island and New Jersey Regions for 10 years to actively referring patients to LLS for support, he is a champion for LLS. He distributes information to newly diagnosed patients and makes himself available for individual consults from patients seeking second opinions. Fighting to end blood cancer has also become a family mission, as Dr. Matasar’s child participated as a Student of the Year candidate to raise critical funds.

Beyond direct patient involvement, Dr. Matasar is a perpetual supporter of the fundraising efforts and advocacy initiatives of LLS. A long-time walker with Light the Night (LTN), Dr. Matasar has been highlighted during VIP receptions and serves as a “Mission Chair” raising awareness and increasing engagement in LTN at his healthcare facility. He often engages his region’s Patient and Community Outreach Manager to help strengthen relationships and support for blood cancer patients and caregivers in New Jersey and the Tri-State area. His continuous work earned him the Dr. John J. Kenny Award from LLS in 2017.

Dr. Matasar's involvement with LLS extends beyond the region level. Dr. Matasar presents at patient-facing education programs locally and nationally, including local education programs on Emerging Therapies for Hematologic Malignancies, lymphoma sessions at the Tri-State Blood Cancer Conference, national virtual Blood Cancer Conference, Ask An Expert video series, and numerous healthcare professional continuing education programs. Additionally, Dr. Matasar has spoken at the Chairman’s Reception and the Student of the Year Workshop. Using the Translational Research Program grant provided by LLS, Dr. Matasar, engaged over 200 long-term survivors of Hodgkin Lymphoma to see those at greater risk for developing heart disease after radiation therapy to the chest and to determine what diagnostic tests are best at detecting heart disease before actual damage to the heart has occurred. For his many years of involvement and relentless support of the LLS mission, the 2024 Quality of Life Award is presented to Dr. Matthew Matasar.

The Quality of Life Award recognizes a member of the medical community, patient or caregiver who has provided outstanding support to the LLS community that advances the Mission of improving the quality of life of our patients and their families.