Silent Disco Screams Fun!

On Saturday, September 28, the Emmanuel Cancer Foundation (ECF) hosted 17 families at Freppe’s Tex Mex in Plainfield at a special “Silent Disco” event. ECF provides free comfort and relief for New Jersey families who have kids with cancer, including professional counseling, material donations, birthday and holiday gifts, emergency financial assistance—and fun experiences like this.

The 90 kids and their family members attending, all of whom have been directly affected by pediatric cancer, took to the dance floor, each with a set of headphones, where two DJs competed for their attention. While one DJ played current top 40 pop hits, the other played throwbacks. The participants chose the songs they wanted to listen to and had a great time simultaneously dancing to different songs. It was an amazing respite for families exhausted from their day-to-day experiences with cancer. During their cancer ordeals, these families do not often get a chance to celebrate, and the children have few opportunities to spend time with other kids who share their experiences.

“Jhonny couldn’t stop laughing once the Silent Disco party began,” said one ECF mom. “It was so much fun! We’ve never seen anything like it before, we were all smiles!”

In addition to the dancing, the families enjoyed an extensive array of Mexican food, including Freppe’s personal guacamole cart, virgin margaritas, and the restaurant’s signature churros.

“Our goal was give these families a day of fun and a break from the ongoing emotional and financial strain of pediatric cancer. Judging from the mile-wide grins we saw on the faces of these families on the dance floor, I’m hopeful that we accomplished our objective,” said ECF board member Jonathan Kanarek, whose vision and efforts brought this event to life.

For photos from the event visit Facebook.com/EmmanuelCancerFoundation or for more information go to www.emmanuelcancer.org.