In March of 2017, Sarah Sauvigne was training to run her first half marathon. After a long run, while showering, she found a lump in one of her breasts. Shortly after, she was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 37 years old. Her children Maddy (age 9) and Kate (age 7) now had to face the news that their mommy was sick. After enduring three surgeries and countless medical appointments, throughout it all, Sarah told her family, “We can do hard things”.

In 2018, with breast cancer awareness month just around the corner, Maddy and Kate approached their parents with the idea of hosting a lemonade stand to raise money for other mommy’s with breast cancer. The children wanted to do something to help other women who were dealing with a similar diagnosis. They hoped money earned could help buy wigs, provide transportation for treatment, or provide hotel rooms so families could be close by during doctor visits.

Maddy and Kate set up their first small lemonade stand outside at Grandma Maureen’s house in North Brunswick. Their goal was to raise $1000 for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) – with little planning they were able to raise slightly more than $560. In 2019, Maddy and Kate once again set up their lemonade stand and raised over $2700 to make their first donation of $3260 to MSK, specifically to Dr. Laurie Kirstein, their mother’s surgeon.

Since then, the Maddy and Kate Sauvigne Cancer Foundation (MKS), a non-for-profit organization was created. MKS has raised and donated over $33,500 to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). It has been our joy and privilege to raise money to support women battling breast cancer. We saw first-hand how tough it can be, it is our hope that this foundation can help other women and families through this difficult time so they feel as supported as we did.