Jonah Update 💙

Happy Sunday! Jonah continues to tolerate radiation incredibly well.  We were told side effects often start showing up around week two, and tomorrow is radiation day 13, so we are incredibly grateful for every day he continues feeling like himself.

He had a great weekend doing exactly what a 14-year-old should be doing—hanging with friends, watching football, eating in his grandparents’ sukkah and chilling today before heading back to school tomorrow.   Randi and Adam also got to celebrate Tyler's mitzvah and be surrounded by lots of love.

Friday and Saturday, Adam, Randi, Stefanie and I had the incredible privilege of attending the WhatIFF Symposium, hosted by Ian’s Friends Foundation, founded by Cheryl and Phil Yagoda. The symposium brings together some of the brightest minds in pediatric brain tumor research—doctors, scientists and researchers from around the country sharing new research and ideas.

It’s hard to put into words what Cheryl and Phil have meant to all of us. Just a few months ago, we didn’t even know them. Today, they feel like family. The way they have wrapped their arms around the Blicks, opened every door they possibly can and brought some of the greatest minds in this field into Jonah’s corner is a gift we will never be able to repay. We are eternally grateful for everything they have done—and continue to do—for this family.

Adam and Randi kicked off the weekend by standing in front of the room, sharing Jonah’s story and the specifics of his incredibly rare tumor, and asking everyone there for one thing: if you have an idea, an option or some outside-the-box thinking that could help our son, please come find us.

And they did.

We spent the next two days talking with leaders in the field and sitting around tables with brilliant people who genuinely want to collaborate and figure out how we attack this beast from every possible direction.

There isn't a roadmap for Jonah’s cancer. So we're creating one.

And after this weekend, we feel incredibly hopeful that we have the right people around the table to give this everything we have.

Radiation ends October 21, and we will spend the next few weeks working with Jonah’s doctors to build a comprehensive plan for what comes next. As soon as we have that roadmap, we'll share it.

Until then, keep the prayers coming. Keep believing in miracles. We are leaving no stone unturned.

And, of course… GO GATORS! 🐊💙🧡