F&M Football Fights Pediatric Cancer

LANCASTER, Pa. - Franklin & Marshall College's Head Football Coach, John Troxell, and his staff, are set to work the fifth annual Lauren's First and Goal Foundation camps. The one-day charity camps will be held at Lafayette College on June 1 and the University of South Florida on June 8. The proceeds of the football camps will go to Lauren's First and Goal Foundation, on which Troxell and his wife, Pamela, serve on the Board of Directors.

Lauren's First and Goal Foundation is a 501c3 charitable organization created in 2004 to raise funds to support pediatric brain tumor research, pediatric cancer services, provide financial assistance to families living with a pediatric cancer diagnosis and to raise public awareness regarding pediatric brain tumors. 211 coaches from 85 colleges and universities, spanning all divisions of NCAA football, have staffed the camps to date, serving 3,418 athletes.

"The camps have attracted the nation's top football coaches and best athletes since the first event," said Troxell. "The campers reap the benefits of learning from some of the best coaches in the college game, but more importantly, learn from the positive example of coaches coming together to help service a community."

Since its inception, the camp and Foundation have raised $311,308, of which $283,001 has been dedicated to research, services and family support. Joining Troxell at the camps is F&M rising sophomore, Lewie Briggs, of Easton, Pa.

The camp and organization are named in honor of Lauren Loose, an eleven-year old brain tumor survivor, who has been living with a diagnosis of multiple brain tumors, Neurofibromatosis and Evan's Syndrome since 9 months of age.

The organization is staffed entirely by volunteers dedicated to the mission of the Foundation. Lauren's parents, Marianne and John, founded the organization, and with the help of family, friends and the wonderful fraternity of volunteer college football coaches launched the First Annual Lauren's First and Goal Football Camp in June 2004.

Like many parents of a child with a life threatening illness, the Looses witnesses first hand the tremendous financial and emotional stressors facing families with a sick child, as well as the lack of viable treatment options for children with brain tumors. Standard treatments, including surgery, radiation and chemotherapy may help in treating the tumor, but often cause debilitating side effects in a developing child's brain that have serious ramification in terms of quality of life.

Franklin & Marshall's athletic teams compete in the NCAA's Division III and the prestigious Centennial Conference. The Diplomats' football team posted a 4-6 mark in 2007, having won the final three games of the season under their second-year head coach.