A New Path: Executive Director of my Family

On September 25th, my?life was turned upside down.?My?four-month old?twin,?baby girl, Madelyn James, was diagnosed with?infant,?Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia?(ALL).?Shortly after,?we found out the genetic make-up of the Leukemia, it’s called?mLL-r – and it’s much longer and harder to treat than the childhood version (any child over one-years-old).?While Leukemia might be a common form of childhood cancer, the infant mutation is much more aggressive with a much longer treatment.?Only 160 infants are diagnosed with this cancer each year, worldwide.

She is a fighter and is fighting with all her energy to fight this cancer.

That means that?my partner,?Dan,?and I have been supporting and loving our sweet Madelyn on this treatment?journey?24/7 with our full hearts and minds. The time we have to spend in the hospital will be at least?six months, with only a few days home in-between treatments.?For her first round of treatment, we spent 40 days, straight at the hospital at INOVA Fairfax Children's Hospital. Each day, we have been going back and forth to the hospital spending 24 hours at a time here by her side. It’s really hard, and I am trying my very best to stay?positive?and a light for Madelyn.?

That’s why?my focus has to be on Madelyn and Hannah.?Therefore, it’s with a heavy, heavy heart that I have to share my resignation from The Child & Family Network Centers (CFNC) as the executive director.??

I must say an incredibly big thanks to my team for holding our organization's mission close to their hearts and continuing our work during this very hard time! Especially, our senior team: Nancy Lobo, Susan Keightley and Rebecca Fetters.

This job has been so much more?than?just a job for me. I love going to work. I love the kids and families. I love the teachers. I love the?administrative team. I love the board. I love our committees. I love our partners. And,?I love that my girls got to see me leading such an incredible organization and be a mom.?CFNC is my family.??

What’s best for this organization,?I believe in with all of my heart, is for me to leave and for a new, amazing leader to follow me. I need to leave so I can full-heartedly?fight for Maddy as my full-time job.??

As someone who led an organization working to become anti-racist, I must call out that I could only do this because of the?privilege?in my life. My partner has amazing insurance and family leave. We have an incredible family and support system surrounding us with love. We both went to college?and we both grew up in families who supported us in our goals and dreams.?We are also both white and systemic?racism?has made a path of success in life for us easier.?That's why equity in health care and equity with all aspects of life is so critical. #socialdeterminentsofhealth?And, something that I will fight hard for every human - no matter their circumstance.

CFNC?is resilient and strong, and that’s because of the team of people who work there. One day, I hope to come back as a board member or team member.?What I know is that CFNC will continue to be an amazing nonprofit because:??

1. We are in a strong, financial position:?Because of the?incredible work of our development team, finance team, and board of directors, we are in a place where we can focus on mission-focused budgeting, DEI, and program support.?Our reserves?exceed six months of operating capacity.?And, we will be able to live out our vision because of this strong reserve.??
2. We have incredible, steadfast supporters.?Last year, we had the strongest fundraising year yet?even during an incredibly uncertain time. Our Brighter Futures Society is growing and strong, our corporate partners continue to grow, and our foundation arm is strong and steady. Our senior team is incredible thanks to Nancy Lobo, Susan Keightley, and Rebecca Fetters. Our grant writer, Isamar, has been with CFNC for over 8 years!?Most importantly, our teachers are the best teachers in the world. They are kind, loving, dedicated and smart and create amazing classrooms full of love and light.
3. Our mission is more critical than ever before.?Last year, we learned why early education is so important for both our economy and the well-being of all children. We could not get back to work without our childcare providers, and all children deserve a high-quality preschool.?And, we must continue to push forward with a lens of racial equity through everything we do.??
4. This is a turning point for CFNC, and our future is bright!??

This was never my vision or plan to leave, and I hope you all can understand why this path has been chosen for me.?We will have a strong plan moving forward because of the amazing leaders and board members of CFNC!?

You can support my sweet Madelyn and other children with cancer in a few ways:?

1. Donate Blood??
2. Donate Platelets??
3. Sign up for Be the Match
4. Support families through PAID family leave for everyone
5. Fight for more funding and research for childhood cancer or fight for more research! I will be sharing more about how how we can support research soon.

If you’d like to follow sweet Maddy’s journey, you can follow us at CaringBridge:?https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/madelynjamesdidio??

Thank you all for your love, support and healing energy. We are #maddystrong.