Meet Cameron
When I was 2 years old, I received a blood transfusion. Five years later, I was diagnosed with HIV. The doctors said I wouldn’t live past 10. That was in 1987. Growing up with HIV was a constant struggle. I have been hospitalized and in surgery so many times I’ve lost count. Just four years ago, I was in the intensive care unit, and it didn’t look like I would make it out. Like many with this disease, I had become resistant to all but a few medications. In my case, there were only two medications left that my body would respond to. And the problem is that there aren’t many new drugs on the horizon. Thankfully, my doctors used these medications to assemble a new cocktail of drugs for me to take, and the result has been miraculous. According to my last blood test, the HIV in my system is dormant and undetectable.
How did I overcome this disease? When you’re living into a future you aren’t supposed to have, you need to find direction, purpose. You need to find what your life is about. So I created the Cameron Siemers Foundation for Hope. Our mission is a simple one: inspire hope and possibility in young adults who are living with life-threatening illnesses. A lot of organizations exist to help children deal with these diseases, but what happens when they turn 18 and live longer than they were "supposed" to? What about school? A career? A relationship?
The Foundation’s Life Grant program was established to help people like me find that purpose and make their mark on the world. It provides a monetary grant that goes to a project created to make a difference in the lives of others. The project could be anything, from publishing a book of poetry to holding a community fundraiser. In my case, the project was creating this foundation. So I guess you could say that I’m the first Life Grant recipient and our first success story. Your story could be next. Apply to our Life Grant program and create a future that makes a difference.
