Dear family and friends,

         My name is Shane Totten and I am currently a junior at Nichols College in Dudley Massachusetts. I am majoring in marketing and minoring in History. In October of 2012, I was diagnosed with Stage 3A Hodgkins Lymphoma. I underwent a biopsy, bone marrow biopsy, and numerous scans before being officially diagnosed and deciding on a plan of action to counteract the Lymphoma. I left Nichols in early November 2012 to return to Traverse City, Michigan to undergo 12 rounds of ABVD Chemotherapy and be under the supervision and support of my family and friends.

         Most people know someone who has been ill in some way or even may have gone through the horrible disease of Cancer. Treatments and everything that goes along with beating these diseases is not cheap; nor is getting your college degree and continuing your life. When I was officially pronounced in complete remission from Lymphoma in August, 2013, I had no idea how I was going to be able to afford to pay for my past treatments and medical expenses as well as a 4-year college or university to get my life back on track. I began scouring the Internet for possible scholarship opportunities to help ease the process of returning to school. After several weeks of searching the Internet and chat rooms, I came across a foundation called My Hometown Heroes (MHH). My Hometown Heroes is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization founded by Danny Heinsohn, a cancer survivor himself, which was formed to help young adult cancer survivors by providing them scholarships to help survivors return to college or university. I was fortunate enough to have been selected as an MHH scholarship recipient in 2013. I cannot tell you how appreciative my family and I were to be selected. It was a huge financial relief coming off my fight with cancer to have assistance in restarting my college education.

         My Hometown Heroes is kicking off their 2015 fundraising campaign in an effort to reach a goal of providing young adult cancer survivors with $100,000 worth of scholarships. As a past recipient of this foundation, I intend to give back to this worthy cause in any way I can. In the first year of My Hometown Heroes (2010), Danny raised $10,000 to give in scholarships get the foundation up and running. Over the past 4 years, Danny and MHH have raised their goal to $100,000 to be raised by the fall semester of 2015. MHH awarded 12 scholarships this past summer for the current school year. Danny, myself, and all the members of My Hometown Heroes are working diligently to hit the $100,000 raised by the end of the year.  

         I hope you will consider a tax-deductible donation, no matter how large or small, to this worthy foundation. I can tell you first hand, as a young cancer survivor and past scholarship recipient, that the MHH family has been a great foundation to be a part of. The cancer community resources, as well as the scholarships they provide are fantastic resources for young cancer patients like me. Feel free to message me or drop me an email at shane.totten@nichols.edu if you have any further questions!

We are grateful for your support as we move closer to our goal of awarding $100,000 in scholarships this summer.

Shane Totten

Nichols College 16

My Hometown Heroes Scholarship Recipient