He is still looking for every opportunity to give more of himself for others. 
 
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 Statistics tell us that one out of every three people will suffer from cancer at some point in their lifetime. Chances are, you or someone you know has had cancer and either beat it, continues to fight it, or has succumbed to it. 
 
 Since it is such a pervasive issue in our world and because it hits so close to home, people are happy to help in any way possible. Whether it is through donating money, shaving their head, or raising awareness through countless creative ways, cancer is an enemy everyone fights against. 
 
 Even though many times they cannot understand the gravity of the situation, children are frequently the most inspiring individuals to watch. Whether they are afflicted with cancer or leading the charge to raise awareness for their family, friends, or a distant stranger whose story they heard, their passion and tenacity is unmatched. 
 
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 Benicio “Benny” Martinez is a seventh-grader from Park Ridge, Illinois who shaved his head at school in order to raise money for cancer research last year. Even at such a young age, he was eager to help the countless people he does not know who suffer from cancer. 
 
 A week later, Benny went on vacation in Orlando, Florida with his family. While there, he started having headaches and became nauseous. 
 
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 They went to the emergency room where doctors did a CT scan of his head. A mere eleven days after shaving his head in the name of cancer awareness, Benny and his family were told he had a tumor in the back of his brain. 
 
 He was taken in for surgery immediately to remove the tumor and relieve the pressure in his skull. The surgery took seven hours to complete and they were able to remove the tumor but when he woke up, he could not swallow, walk, or talk. 
 
 This phenomenon is called Posterior Fossa Syndrome and, unfortunately, is not uncommon in children who have brain surgery. But this was not the end of their bad news. 
 
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 Three days after his procedure, they received the pathology results back: it was a medullablastoma, the most common type of brain cancer in children. Furthermore, the tumor was cancerous and malignant, meaning it is likely to have spread to other parts of his body. 
 
 Now, Benny’s family and community are rallying around the kind-hearted, sweet, and thoughtful young man. As he works through therapy, his speech is beginning to return and he hopes to return to school. 
 
 “They must be joking,” he recalled thinking after his parents told him. “When I found out it was real, I got pretty scared.” 
 
 Yet, he refuses to focus on himself and would rather use this setback as a way of helping others. On April 1, they are holding a fundraiser to raise money to donate to St. Baldrick’s for childhood cancer research — their goal is $60,000. You can donate to St. Baldrick’s in Benny’s honor here. 
 
 “I want to do whatever I can to help kids going through the same thing that I am,” he says. “I know it’s hard, and I’d like to tell them not to give up any time soon. I’m not giving up. I want to walk again.” 
 
 Benny continues to fight and persevere despite his rigorous schedule of physical and speech therapy, radiation treatment, and chemotherapy. “Through it all, he’s stayed positive and touched many lives in spite of facing several setbacks,” says his dad, Ed. “It’s been difficult for him to lose his independence and rely on others to do things for him. But he’s making good progress, determined to make a comeback.” 
 
 His doctor, Larissa Pavone, has been especially impressed by Benny, saying, “There is nothing easy about what Benny is going through and yet he handles every challenge with a wonderful spirit, maturity and optimism. He’s a remarkable, intelligent and funny kid with an old soul.” 
 
 Many people might try and focus more on their own situation — saving their strength to endure therapy and spending more time with family and loved ones — but not Benny. He is still looking for every opportunity to give more of himself for others. 
 
 Once his chemotherapy is done and is able to grow his hair back, he likely will not have it for long before shaving it off again. “Losing your hair to help a cure is worth it. I really like giving back.,” he says.
– A giant bell on a billboard in St. Louis will ring every time a child completes chemotherapy at a local hospital, per the AP. The 12-foot-tall metal bell went up Wednesday on a billboard over Interstate 44 that reads "Childhood wins another round against cancer." Hospital staff will use a mobile app to trigger the bell every time a child completes cancer treatment at St. Louis Children's Hospital, explains the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The bell's speakers enable people passing by to hear it ring. The hospital has its own bell that children with cancer can ring to mark their last day of chemotherapy, and five to 10 kids a month do so.