When TE Dawson Knox unexpectedly lost his younger brother Luke Knox back in August, Bills Mafia and all of the Western New York Community were quick to create social media movement to provide support for the Knox Family through donations to P.U.N.T Pediatric Cancer Collaborative in honor of Luke.
“As you can expect, it’s just an absolute blessing,” Knox said. “My parents, their jaws dropped when they heard the figure that had been raised, and even just the #LukesLegacy. It means so much to my family too because we know how incredible of a person Luke was. Now, so many people have rallied behind him and our family. It just means so much to us, and we couldn’t be more thankful for everybody.”
By the weeks’ end, nearly $230,000 was raised from 9,050 donations — mostly in the amount of $16.88 for Luke and Dawson’s football numbers. And on Tuesday morning, Knox and the P.U.N.T. Pediatric Cancer Collaborative announced plans for stewardship of these resources that were raised in Luke’s honor.
“We are here today because, in the wake of that sorrow, Bills Mafia galvanized for good to let Dawson know that he was being held and his brother’s memory was being lifted,” Gwen Mysiak, Executive Director of P.U.N.T. Pediatric Collaborative, said. “Unprecedented support for the small but mighty nonprofit actually took down our website.”
So as a tribute to Luke’s giving spirit, 15% of the proceeds raised will be used to insect a counterpart to Dawson’s Locker program to run in the pediatric oncology unit at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Knox’s hometown of Nashville, TN. The establishment of Luke’s Locker will provide vital support for childhood cancer patients and their families while also honoring Luke’s legacy of kindness and compassion.
“There’s a lot of emotions, but gratitude is one of the biggest just to see that his life has gone on past everything that’s happened and it’s going to continue to live on through the legacy that he left,” Knox said. “And how incredible he was as a human, as a brother, and as a person. Now that we got Luke’s Locker going, it’s just going to keep going and going.”
Part of the proceeds will also be used to establish P.U.N.T.’s first-ever “Helping Hands” Endowment, which is a financial safety net for families who are dealing with the ripple effects of pediatric cancer. Assistance can be provided for housing payments, utilities, medical expenses, and more.
Source: Bills Today: Dawson Knox and P.U.N.T. announce Luke’s Locker for childhood cancer patients
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