There is no escaping the pit in your stomach when you hear someone you know and love has cancer. Emotions are high and you are at a loss of words. When senior Trinity Whitted found out her little sister had Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, it felt unreal to her. 

“Within the first week of me finding out, I went to Walmart and you know how they have those Riley donations? I looked at it and decided to donate for once,” Whitted said. 

Hodgkin’s Lymphoma is a type of cancer in the lymph nodes. This type of cancer accounts for less than four percent of all cancers in children up to 14 years of age and is the most common cancer for young adults between the ages of 15 to 18. 

With her sister’s recent diagnosis of Hodgkins, it has impacted her life greatly and inspired her to do better. Not only in school but to make a difference in the lives of others. 

Whitted sister’s diagnosis inspired her to create a senior project to help young cancer patients. She decided to use her love of photography and set up a photoshoot for the children at Columbus Regional Hospital. 

“Photography is just a really good vessel for me to express myself and what I think the description of beauty is, so for my senior project, I had an idea to connect with Columbus Regional through the cancer patients and do a photoshoot to boost their confidence and self-esteem,” Whitted said. “When my sister started to do chemo, she lost her hair and her self-esteem and confidence went really low.”

Whitted is not only looking forward to helping the patients, but she cannot wait to meet and talk with them. She is also excited to hear about their lives and learn who they are. 

“I’m honestly looking forward to meeting the patients and seeing what they are all about because everyone has their own different story,” Whitted said.

Whitted’s sister has become a big influence in Whitted’s life and her inspiration. Even though her sister’s treatment is going well, Whitted will be there by her side as a big sister and a best friend through the rest of her sister’s entire journey.