MaxLove Project cancer walk returns to Tanaka Farms in Irvine on April 30
Reyes and Joanna Valdivia of Orange witnessed a remarkable transformation in their daughter, Sarah, when she participated at last year’s inaugural MaxLove Project farm walk for childhood cancer.
Sarah was diagnosed with an aggressive Stage 4 brain tumor, diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), by Children’s Hospital of Orange County doctors in January 2022.
Her speech started getting thrown off, and her right side wasn’t able to move. She was in a wheelchair for much of the duration of her life, which lasted about 10 months more until she died on Dec. 6, 2022, at age 8.
But there were moments at the MaxLove walk at Irvine’s Tanaka Farms last May that seemed magical.
“It was a great experience,” Joanna Valdivia said. “We brought Sarah in her wheelchair. It was right between radiations, so she could walk, but she would get really tired. She ended up walking almost the whole thing. She was relaxed. Something changed, that she was able to walk, she was eating berries. It was a lot of energy, positive vibes. It was nice. We hadn’t seen that from her.”
Though Sarah is now gone, the Valdivia family plans to walk in the second annual Fork Childhood Cancer Walk for Kids, which returns to Tanaka Farms on Sunday, April 30. Their son Ryan, 10, will join in.
The decision to return was easy. The Valdivias want to continue raising awareness about DIPG, a rare type of cancer that affects about 200 to 400 children each year. They made sure that was put as the cause of death on Sarah’s death certificate.
Plus, the Fork Childhood Cancer Walk is somewhere they can be with people who have become their tribe.
“It’s a safe place,” Joanna Valdivia said. “We don’t judge by the way they look, if they don’t have hair, they don’t have movements. They’re just kids.”
People are invited to create teams for the walk, which is open to the public and benefits MaxLove Project, or individual tickets can be purchased for $45 for adults and $10 for children. A new format is being introduced this year, including chef-led culinary tastings in addition to the 1.3-mile interactive walk.
Entry to the self-paced walk path takes place from 3 to 7 p.m., with timed tickets.
Teams raise money that earns them tickets to redeem. Teams that raise at least $250 will be invited to plant and dedicate a sunflower seedling in honor of a child or sibling.
MaxLove Project founder and Chief Hope Officer Audra DiPadova Wilford said the walk is “kind of like a taste of MaxLove, really.
“We’re really wanting to make this event open and accessible to anyone who wants to be involved,” DiPadova Wilford said. “I guess the message that I would love everyone to know about this event is that there’s something in it for everyone. It’s such a beautiful, fun, joyful, engaging way to show up for families facing childhood cancers and rare diseases. I guarantee it will be an absolutely beautiful afternoon for anyone who participates in it; it’s so worth it.”
DiPadova Wilford and her husband, Justin, founded the MaxLove Project in 2011 after their son Max, then 4, was diagnosed with brain cancer. The nonprofit’s mission is to increase quality of life and reduce health risks for families surviving childhood cancer and other rare diseases.
These are often things that aren’t covered in the traditional healthcare system, she said, things like supporting people with diet and sleep hygiene, and modalities like acupuncture.
“We really serve the families in the system that they have access to today, as we work to advocate and change the system of tomorrow,” DiPadova Wilford said. “We’re seeing both of those things happen. It’s really incredible.”
MaxLove Project, which has offices in Orange as well as Savannah, Ga., also holds a Farm to Fork dinner at Tanaka Farms each September.
After Sarah’s diagnosis, the Valdivias started taking her to a MaxLove Project “Ohana” session each Wednesday. It featured acupuncture and massage sessions, as well as therapy dogs.
The organization helped facilitate setting the family up with cancer clinical trials and even hosted Sarah’s funeral reception, Joanna Valdivia said.
“MaxLove was our light in our dark tunnel that we went through,” she said.
Even without Sarah, the family continues to want to share the love of MaxLove. Reyes Valdivia recently returned to work as a manager at Union Pacific railroad, after taking more than a year off to support Sarah.
“Awareness is our big thing — and to help other families that we see that are here,” he said. “This just comes at you, and you’re not expecting it.”
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