After losing her infant daughter to leukemia, Jennifer Scott co-founded a Texas nonprofit that’s now served thousands of families.
In 2004, Jennifer Scott’s daughter Allie was just four months old when she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a rare and aggressive blood cancer with less than a 20% survival rate in infants. For the next five months, Allie endured chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant and over 95 blood transfusions. She smiled through the pain, inspiring thousands who followed her journey online. On September 13, 2004, just days before turning nine months, Allie passed away.
But even during her daughter’s treatment, Scott noticed something: while her own family was surrounded by support, others at the hospital were not. Parents struggled with food, transportation and even basic emotional care. That didn’t sit right with her. Alongside her then-husband, Scott began helping others by sharing meals, gift cards and even a laptop for a teen named Jordan.
That spirit of compassion became the foundation for Heroes for Children, a nonprofit that has redefined what support for families facing childhood cancer looks like.
Photo: Alli, Jenny’s daughter, photo courtesy of Heroes for Children
Turning Grief Into Purpose
The true spark came when Scott found a blog by another mother, Larissa Linton, who had also lost her daughter, Taylor, to the same disease three years earlier. The two connected and quickly realized: together, they could do more. In November 2004, just two months after Allie’s passing, they joined forces and launched Heroes for Children.
Instead of focusing on research, the nonprofit focused on families. From financial assistance and laptops to social experiences like Valentine’s dinners and holiday gift programs, the organization tackled both the tangible and emotional toll of childhood cancer.
What began at Medical City Dallas has grown into a statewide mission. Heroes for Children now serves 20 hospitals across Texas. Social workers serve as the link, requesting support on behalf of families who may need help with utility bills, funeral costs or even an accessible apartment for a teen in a wheelchair and his beloved dachshunds.
Photo: Taylor, Larissa’s daughter, photo courtesy of Heroes for Children
Zoe’s Quinceañera: A Celebration of Strength
Among the hundreds of families Heroes for Children has supported, one recent story stands out: Zoe, a 13-year-old girl battling terminal stage 4 osteosarcoma, dreamed of having a quinceañera to honor her Mexican heritage, knowing she likely wouldn’t live to see her 15th birthday.
With just two and a half weeks to plan, Heroes for Children stepped in. They coordinated a $4,000 celebration complete with a limo, gown, balloon arches and catering for more than 150 guests. Zoe, paralyzed from her cancer and visibly in pain, sat on a throne surrounded by her family and friends, smiling, greeting every guest and even collecting LEGO to donate to other pediatric cancer patients.
“It was one of the most meaningful events I’ve ever witnessed,” Scott says. “She deserved to be celebrated like royalty, because that’s exactly who she is.”
Moments like this are at the heart of the nonprofit’s mission: honoring life, creating joy and reminding children and their families that they are not alone.
Photo: Zoe the quinceañera, photo courtesy of Heroes for Children
A Return to the Mission
After years working in education, Scott returned full-time as executive director of Heroes for Children in June 2025.
“I didn’t leave teaching to work for a charity,” she told her stepdaughter. “I left to work for this charity.”
While the nonprofit was founded in honor of Allie and Taylor, its focus today is broader. With roughly 1,800 children diagnosed with cancer each year in Texas, Heroes for Children aims to expand services, reach more families and keep meeting the evolving needs of a community that often goes unseen.
How to Help
Heroes for Children thrives on community support and every effort, big or small, makes a difference. Whether it’s organizing a school fundraiser or rounding up your bill at a restaurant, there are countless ways to contribute. Monthly donors, known as “Everyday Heroes,” provide critical, ongoing support to help families when they need it most.
Even sharing the mission on social media can make an impact. “If you can’t give money, give your voice,” Scott says. “Tell someone about us.”
Learn more or get involved at heroesforchildren.org
Call 214-256-5824
Follow on Instagram and Facebook
Photo courtesy of Heroes for Children