one by one®: The Super Sophia Project
One month before she turned two years old, Nicolle Georgiev’s daughter, Sophia, was diagnosed with leukemia. Over the next two years of receiving treatment, Georgiev remembers a physically and mentally draining experience of being in and out of the hospital.
However, a random act of kindness brightened Sophia’s day, and an idea for a nonprofit was born. “A very nice custodian gave her a pack of stickers,” Georgiev said. “That act of kindness sparked something in our family.”
Inspired, Georgiev founded The Super Sophia Project to give back to other children and families experiencing the rigors of cancer treatment. In 2016, the family’s goal was to fill 100 “Love Boxes™” with gifts and goodies to donate to children currently undergoing cancer treatment. “The community loved it and wanted to get involved,” Georgiev said. “That first year we were able to donate to more than 1,100 kids.”
How nonprofit giveaways help spread the love for children and families
To date, The Super Sophia Project has partnered with hundreds of volunteers to give more than 30,000 Love Boxes to kids and families in the greater Toronto area. Each box is designated for children ranging in age from infants to 18-years old.
Volunteers fill their Love Boxes with toys, gifts and other items that are relevant to that child. Some popular items include coloring books and crayons, cozy socks, crafting items, toys or dolls and hygiene items, like a toothbrush and toothpaste. Some volunteers also prepare Love Boxes for the family members of the patients.
“The point of the box is to provide them with items that can help them while they’re in the hospital, but also distract them and let them have some fun. Hospitals aren’t exactly known for being places of fun,” said Georgiev. “We want to let them know that someone cares about them.”
Nonprofit giveaways, like pens—plus a promotional banner featuring a portrait of Sophia and the group’s social media pages—help recruit volunteers and spread the word about the organization’s goals. “The banner is great for events like our Christmas sorting event, where we gather all the Love Boxes and get them ready for delivery,” Georgiev said. The purple pens, imprinted with The Super Sophia Project logo, are a fantastic nonprofit giveaway for volunteers and family members of sick children. “We include some in the Love Boxes for parents,” Georgiev said, “because they go well with crossword puzzles.”
Georgiev is thankful for the relationships her family has made over the years through The Super Sophia Project. “It all starts with a box, but the families follow each other’s journeys,” she said. And though she says that it’s hard when some of the people who they meet through the organization don’t make it, the work is more important than ever. “I keep telling myself that the box is not going to take away their cancer,” she said, “but it will show them that we’re with them. It doesn’t cost much to be kind to someone.”
A note from Cheryl
It is so inspiring to see The Super Sophia Project spread kindness and love to kids and families in need of support. 4imprint is pleased to be a small part of The Super Sophia Project’s goal to give back to childhood cancer patients and their families by providing nonprofit giveaways. To learn more about a 4imprint one by one® grant, visit onebyone.4imprint.ca.