It was two years ago today that Cristian earned his wings and went to Heaven. Cristian died at 6am on January 25th as I held him in my arms. No matter how much time passes, I still miss him and love him more than ever.

Last week, the world lost an amazing and courageous person: my friend Vivian Rivera. Vivian was a breast cancer survivor but a brain tumor took her from us too soon on Friday January 7.

A few weeks ago, I met another little boy with Pontine Glioma. His name is Jordan Malave and he was first diagnosed with Pontine Glioma when he was only two and a half. I met Jordan with his dad Jayson, and spent an hour on the phone with his mom, Leeana Castro.

Last month, my good friend Vito Bruno produced a concert celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Freestyle at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. He had promised that a portion of the proceeds from the event would benefit the Cristian Rivera Foundation and this week, he handed me a $6,000 check.

Each day, we lose more and more children to Pontine Glioma. It’s a sad fact that’s only made harder now that Thanksgiving is coming, with the holiday season not far behind. I got to meet even more families whose children died of brain tumors at The Mikey Czech Foundation’s Third Annual Moms For Mikey event, Comedy for a Cure.