Jocelyn’s Life & Legacy

Jocelyn did not like to be left out of anything. The second child in her family, she was “the wild one”—born with a spark, ready to keep up with the big kids, and determined to be part of every activity and conversation. She wanted to know how the world worked, and she had a million questions.

She was also the person who would tell you exactly what she thought. At school, if kids weren’t following the rules, Jocelyn wouldn’t go report them to the teacher. She’d tell them herself to knock it off. She had a strong sense of fairness, an honest heart, and the best intentions.

With her mom, Amanda, she could talk about everything. And if there was something she hadn’t shared, she might come home feeling guilty and “confess”—often over the smallest things, like buying an extra cookie at lunch or thinking something unkind. That was Jocelyn: candid, tenderhearted, and conscientious in her own way.

She was just as happy making people laugh. A goofy class clown, Jocelyn loved being silly and didn’t much like being told what to do. She nearly got suspended from kindergarten for wandering outside the classroom and climbing bookshelves. It’s hard not to picture her doing it with that same bold curiosity she brought to everything.

Jocelyn taught the people who loved her how to slow down. She once set her alarm for 5 a.m.—three hours before school—because she didn’t want to feel rushed. She showed them that life doesn’t always have to happen as quickly as possible. She taught patience, too: to pause before getting upset, to remember that people may not know better, and to speak up for those who can’t speak up for themselves. She wanted people to be more accepting of what they didn’t understand, and to let love prevail over uncertainty about their differences.

Her mom, Amanda, and her older sister, Isabelle, loved and continue to love Jocelyn deeply. She is their daughter and sister, woven into the everyday life of their family and irreplaceable in it. During treatment, Jocelyn also formed meaningful bonds with the nurses, doctors, physical therapists, and many others who cared for her. They helped her feel safe and loved, and she carried them in her heart.

Osteosarcoma became part of Jocelyn’s life in ways no child should have to endure: exhausting treatments, hospital stays, fevers, bloody noses, and the loss of freedom that came with needing a walker or wheelchair. She faced all of it while remaining the curious, outspoken, funny girl her family knew and loved.

For more than 50 to 60 years, there has been little progress in treatment for osteosarcoma. That long lack of progress is not an abstraction to families like Jocelyn’s. It means children are still facing a brutal cancer with treatments that can take an enormous toll, and families are still wishing for options that are more effective and less toxic.

Glimmers Childhood Cancer Foundation is advancing pediatric osteosarcoma research with the goal of helping discover those treatments. This fundraiser honors Jocelyn not only by remembering who she was, but by carrying forward a purpose her story makes impossible to ignore: children facing osteosarcoma deserve better.

Jocelyn’s humor, honesty, courage, and fierce spirit remain part of the lives she touched. In her honor, we can help move research forward—so the children who come next may have more hope, more options, and a better chance. All donations are tax deductible. Every dollar donated goes to the most cutting-edge osteosarcoma research. You may make a one-time donation or set up a recurring donation to support our ongoing efforts to support research. The Mead family and Glimmers Foundation are grateful to your giving honoring Jocelyn’s life and legacy.

Honoring Jocelyn Mead’s Life & Legacy

Jocelyn’s Legacy: Advancing Better Treatments for Pediatric Osteosarcoma