Cristian, it’s been a while since I last updated this journal but in the past couple of months, so many exciting things have happened that I just had to share them with you. In March, I attended the first–ever meeting of the Children’s Brain Tumor Project Family Council and was touched to not only meet so many other DIPG families but also hear their stories. There are so many DIPG Angels out there, with hundreds of new ones earning their wings every year. It’s heartbreaking and it needs to stop. I am so proud to be part of the efforts to find a cure and I am especially proud to be on the team of Dr. Mark Souweidane and Dr. Jeffrey Greenfield. Their clinical trial had such promising results that they are now working to extend it. That news gives me so much hope! I am also excited to have new Committee Members joining me in this fight–Committee Members like Rafael Toro, the VP of Goya; Meiling Toro; and Rocky Bucano. Thanks must also go to the actress Abigail Breslin, who just made an amazingly generous $10,000 donation to the Cristian Rivera Foundation. I am blessed to be surrounded by people who care so much. Together, we are gearing up for a fight that we get closer to winning every day. In the coming months, I look forward to planning the next Cristian Rivera Foundation Celebrity Gala. We are already looking for a location and thinking about making this year’s theme butterflies–just like the butterflies you’ve sent me over the years, reminding me that you are always in my corner. I love you and miss you 10. I will never give up until the disease that took your life finally has a cure. Full Steam Ahead!

John “Gungie” Rivera
Forever Cristian’s Daddy