Expect Miracles Foundation Blog

To all of the friends and supporters in our Samfund and Expect Miracles communities,

You’ve all heard me share my story of being diagnosed with cancer twice in my early 20s, receiving a $275,000 bill in the mail after my bone marrow transplant, and creating The Samfund (or, Surviving And Moving Forward: The SAMFund for Young Adult Survivors of Cancer) as a way to pay forward the support I was so fortunate to have during my years of treatment and recovery.

What you may not know is that I didn’t just do it to help people. I did it because I needed to find a way forward through my own survivorship.

In early 2021, Expect Miracles Foundation received a transformational gift from the estate of renowned songwriter Jack Lawrence. An inductee to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, he was perhaps best known for songs like “Beyond the Sea” and “Tenderly,” but was also a quiet philanthropist, and what makes this gift even more meaningful was his personal tie to The Samfund.

One of The Samfund’s founding Board members, Barry Seigerman (who is also my uncle), was Jack’s cousin. I never met Jack in person, but he was an early supporter of The Samfund.  His belief in our mission and dedication to helping those impacted by cancer were essential to our work.

Given his incredible generosity and charity, Expect Miracles Foundation has created a permanent named Samfund grant to honor his legacy. Each year, we will select several young adult cancer survivors to receive this grant, with preference given to applicants who are in or pursuing the arts. We know that Jack would have been delighted and humbled to help these young adult cancer survivors on the path to accomplishing their dreams.

—Samantha Watson, Founder of The Samfund

Expect Miracles Foundation is delighted to have welcomed three new YPEM Vice Presidents this year.

To celebrate, we’ll be spotlighting each new VP with a Q&A series! This week, we’re featuring Max Beimler, Global Associate Product Manager at  Reebok. Read below to hear more about Max's involvement with YPEM and why he’s excited to take on this new role.  

At last month's Expect Miracles in Manhattan event at Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City, Expect Miracles Foundation presented several awards to a few of its most dedicated supporters.