The “Be Loud! Sophie Foundation” supports adolescent and young adult cancer patients at the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. The foundation was founded by Niklaus and Lucy Steiner and is named for their daughter Sophie who died of cancer in 2013.
Each year, the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro hosts a concert for the foundation featuring local musicians who gather to play for a good cause. Saturday night's event features tributes to The Police, The Cure and The Ramones.
Rob Ladd is a musician and will be drumming tomorrow night and Lauren Lux leads the foundation's work with patients.
They joined WUNC recently for an interview about their music and their work with the foundation.
This is an excerpt of an edited transcript of that conversation. You can hear the full interview by clicking the LISTEN button at the top of this post.
Lauren, can you outline the work the foundation does and the patients you care for?
Lauren Lux: “What that community does is raise money for our adolescent and young adult program here at UNC. So, we see and work with patients between the ages of 13 and 39. We aim to provide developmentally appropriate age specific care, both from the medical side of things and the psychosocial and life side of things. So, what we say to patients is we want to figure out how their cancer is going to impact them as young people, and how who they are and where they are in their life as a young person is going to impact their cancer care. And our team kind of sits right in the middle of that to try to mediate all those factors… I think one of the things we love about working with young people, is their authenticity and honesty. And often humor as they approach some really challenging situations.”
How has the program grown over the years?
Lux: “We started with me seven years ago, and we're about to bring on our ninth member of our team. And we all work together to provide both clinical care – taking care of patients – but also to do research and to do a lot of teaching and training and advocacy, to sort of teach others about how to work with young people who are going through cancer treatment.”
Rob, these events are always fun, but that doesn't mean there isn't a lot of work that goes into them. You've played in almost every event. How did you get involved?
Rob Ladd: “I knew Sophie. And Sophie was a amazing person. And she really left a mark with everyone who ever met her and me especially and she's one of my heroes, the way that she handled what she had to go through and just the story of the whole family. I was just like, what can I do? … This has been the hardest, musically, that we've had to work. We've been rehearsing a lot for this. … This is going to be super fun.”
Is there a particular song or performance you're looking forward to the most?
Ladd: “Anytime you get to play in a trio, that’s very special… You’re going to have to wait to find out. I never tell.”
Doors open at the Cat’s Cradle at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and the “Be Loud! Sophie Foundation” show begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25, with all proceeds going to the foundation. The foundation is also auctioning off UNC men’s basketball tickets.
