Surya announced that it will match dollar for dollar every donation made to the Yuvaan Tiwari foundation in the month of May. May is brain tumor awareness month. Last year, Satya and Parvati Tiwari, principals of Surya, lost their 3-year-old son Yuvaan (Yuvi) to an aggressive and fatal brain tumor called diffuse midline glioma (DMG). DMG, with median overall survival of only eight to 11 months from the time of diagnosis, strikes 200 to 400 children in the United States each year.
Last year, the Tiwari family created the Yuvaan Tiwari Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The foundation’s mission is to fund research to find a cure for diffuse midline gliomas and other fatal pediatric brain cancers, while supporting patients and families along their journey. “There is no cure for DMG and the protocols for treatment have remained unchanged for the last 60 years. Parents like us who receive a devastating brain tumor diagnosis are left with little beyond hope, prayers and limited experimental treatment options with harsh side effects. We created the Yuvaan Tiwari Foundation to enable a brighter future for kids with brain cancer” said Satya Tiwari, President of Surya.
Brain tumors are the deadliest and most common form of pediatric cancer and are the leading cause of death by disease for children in the United States. Less than 4 percent of federal funding is directed at pediatric cancer research, with only a small fraction of those funds used for brain tumor research. “Funding from family foundations like ours is critical to move towards a cure. We have personally endured the pain, hopelessness and devastation that follow a brain cancer diagnosis. We want to change the course of that journey for other families. Yuvi always saw the bright side of life and we hope his legacy will continue to shine a light for others,” said Surya CMO Parvati Tiwari.
Donations to the Yuvaan Tiwari Foundation’s ‘Go Gray in May’ campaign to raise $100K can be made at www.surya.com/GoGrayinMay. 100 percent of proceeds will fund groundbreaking research initiatives and support impacted families. Facebook fundraisers for the Yuvaan Tiwari Foundation can be created at https://www.facebook.com/fund/YuvaanTiwariFoundation/. All funds raised now through May 31st will be matched by Surya.