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What is A Lion in the House ?
On June 21 and 22, 2006 the Independent Lens on PBS aired A Lion in the House, which offered an unprecedented look at the cancer journeys of five young people and their families over a six-year period. Award-winning filmmakers Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert brought audiences face to face with the uncertainty of the entire cancer experience and its rippling effects on family, community and professional caregivers. At the core of A Lion in the House is the resilience, courage and wisdom of five extraordinary young people.

How are A Lion in the House and the LAF working together to improve the lives of people affected by cancer?
LAF support for A Lion in the House included $100,000 for post-production costs as well as $50,000 to Independent Television Service (ITVS) to fund grants for public television stations. The goal of the ITVS Broadcast Outreach Campaign is to galvanize public attention around childhood cancer and stimulate interactions that will lead to improved care and strengthened support systems for families facing childhood cancer.  The ITVS network of community-based outreach professionals worked with local partners and public television stations to hold screenings, workshops and forums.

In addition, the LAF awarded $15,000 to the Survivor Alert project.  Survivor Alert is a nationwide initiative to raise awareness of what young adult childhood cancer survivors can do to stay healthy. It consists of a series of celebratory, educational events held in communities across the country.  LAF funds helped pay for long-term cancer survivorship clinics to hold events across the country to connect adolescent and young adult cancer survivors with their local survivorship clinics. 

How can you get involved?
You can help raise awareness of childhood cancer survivorship issues by screening A Lion in the House and holding discussion groups in your community.  You can order DVDs of the entire film or individual modules focusing on survivorship, health disparities, or end of life and bereavement on the ITVS website at http://www.itvs.org/outreach/lioninthehouse/.  There, you can also find all of the information you need to hold a discussion group, including fact sheets, discussion guides and campaign overviews.

Visit the Survivor Alert website at http://www.survivoralert.org/ to find a Survivor Alert event near you.

You can also visit www.mylion.org to explore options for community service related to childhood cancer.