Long Island Teen Raises $36K For Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

SOUTH SETAUKET, NY — Jordan Amato, a senior at Ward Melville High School, has likely made an impact on several lives.

With the help of her friends and family, Amato, 17, of South Setauket, raised over $36,000 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting and curing blood cancers.

"I enjoy helping people," Amato told Patch. "So I thought that this was a really good cause that has several positive benefits."

Amato got involved in the LLS's 2019 Students of the Year campaign through two of her friends, Ally and Catherine. Last year, Ally was vice president of a campaign in honor of her friend Jill's aunt, who suffered through leukemia. Amato then brought Catherine on as a team member.

"Ally told me, 'This is a great cause, you should get involved in it.' She passed the torch down to me and I basically carried on the tradition for 2019."

From there, Amato ran several successful campaigns to raise money for LLS. She led a team that traveled to half a dozen neighborhoods and stuffed letters in mailboxes that encouraged people to donate to the society either online or via check. Her team had its own website, which the flyers provided the link to.

She also got clubs at Ward Melville to help sell chocolate as a fundraiser, which raised a significant portion of the team's money.

"I’ve never really seen a lot of people in my school coming together just for philanthropy, so I thought it was really nice," Amato said. "And that it’s a national fundraising organization, I thought it was a great opportunity."

Additionally, she helped throw a school badminton tournament and held a dress sale at her home. She used her singing talent to hold a karaoke event, as well.

Lisa Brunengraber, campaign manager at LLS, said the Students of the Year campaign is a seven-week fundraising campaign for exemplary high school students. The society selects students based on their planning ability, professional skills and presentation skills.

Her father, Steven Amato, shared that Jordan maintains a 102 weighted GPA. It was her academic success, along with her penchant for extra curricular activities, that got her chosen to lead one of the LLS campaigns.

"I’m extremely proud of her and the fact that she picked a very admirable cause," he said. "Jordan is an extremely hard worker. When she puts her mind to things, she really doesn’t stop."

Her determination was evident in the amount of money she helped raise for the LLS campaign, where students use skills such as entrepreneurship, marketing and project management to raise funds for the organization. Teams raise money in honor of a patient hero who is currently battling blood cancer, or is in remission.

"We commend her fundraising efforts," Brunengraber said.

Amato was invited by the New York Mets to sing the Star Spangled Banner at Citi Field on Sept. 8. It was her second time, as she had also sung the national anthem there in 2018.

Video courtesy of Steven Amato

The Amato family used the opportunity to give back when they purchased game tickets for Ryan Starace and his family. Ryan, 6, who has been battling acute lymphoblastic leukemia for three years, was named a 2020 LLS Boy of the Year. He is a cancer survivor currently in remission.

"We’re incredibly grateful and feel honored that they would think of us and Ryan for such an incredible opportunity," Nicole Starace, Ryan's mother, said. "What we’ve learned through this process is that with all the bad comes some really wonderful people, and the Amato family is definitely one of those families."

Starace said she got chills when she heard Amato had raised $36,000 for a cause she and her family can very closely relate to.

"I think back to when I was her age, and I was doing nothing near as amazing as what she’s doing," she said. "To raise that much money for someone so young is so incredible. It really means a lot to our family, because we see how much it helps us. We’re so grateful to her, and she’s amazing. I’m very proud of what she’s done."

While Amato hasn't committed to a college yet, she wants to major in science and eventually go on the pre-med track in order to become an ears, nose and throat doctor. She is also currently going to pre-college in New York City for opera, where she's considering auditioning for a voice major.

"I thought it was interesting that I could help patients medically while also helping singers," Amato said.

If her work with LLS confirms one thing, it's that she has a strong desire to help others.