Number of Participants: 1
Hours Donated: 25
Value of Time Served: $211
Event Amount Raised: $1,000
Event Type: Children & Youth
Sport: Boys Soccer
School: Smithtown High School-East
Date: April 3, 2025
Location:
Smithtown High School East
School Street, Saint James
NY
About:
Smithtown High School East senior, Matthew Gandarillas, recently walked into the Stony Brook Cancer Center and donated more than $1,000 worth of gift cards and toys for children suffering from cancer. Matthew, who is a part of the National, Math and Spanish honor societies as well as a member of the varsity soccer team, spearheaded a pediatric cancer drive on his own, because it is an issue very close to him and his family. Matthew is a cancer survivor, himself.
When Matthew was just 8 months old his mother, Teresa Gandarillas, felt a lump on his side that turned out to be a malignant tumor on his liver. After undergoing weekly chemotherapy, plus a seven-hour surgery to remove half of his liver and entire gallbladder, Matthew was eventually declared cancer-free at the age of 5.
“It took a little bit of time but I was able to succeed in the end,” Matthew stated.
Matthew recently organized a pediatric cancer donation drive to provide toys and funding to help soothe children suffering from cancer.
“I thought about this because I want to give back to the community and doctors and I want to support the kids who are going through the same thing I was going through. To tell them to keep fighting.”
Photo caption: Smithtown High School East senior, Matthew Gandarillas, recently walked into the Stony Brook Cancer Center and donated more than $1,000 worth of gift cards and toys for children suffering from cancer.
Photos courtesy of Smithtown CSD
