Nicole Yarrow
Lowell, IN
Executive Director of NICK foundation— Northwest Indiana Cancer Kids Foundation
Member of Coalition Against Childhood Cancer
When Nicole Yarrow’s son was diagnosed with cancer, she learned firsthand how life-changing extra support can be. Now, she pays it forward with her work as the Executive Director of the Northwest Indiana Cancer Kids Foundation, helping other families navigate the unimaginable.
Nicole has been with NICK eight years and held the position of Executive Director for the past three. NICK provides support to families in eight Indiana counties that have a child battling cancer by providing financial assistance, resources, and more.
Nicole’s son Ronin who is now 15, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The NICK Foundation provided the family things like gas cards, grocery cards and Christmas presents to help out. Nicole shares how grateful she and her family were, once her son was feeling better and was done with treatment, we started volunteering at the NICK events. And then eventually they brought me in as the director of Family Services.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
There are a lot of people that I’ve made friends with [who have] a child that is no longer here. At NICK, we do a special project, or we donate to research in memory of their child, or any way that they want to honor and remember them. We will never let their child be forgotten.
Is there a special project you normally do?
It’s called Miranda’s Skye Hug. One of the families realized when they were in the hospital that they didn’t have anything from home. They felt very unprepared. It was incredibly stressful and they didn’t even have a piece of paper to write anything down or a good box of tissues— everyone knows those crappy hospital tissues.
So what they started was a bag made for the parents with a nice notebook and pens, tissues, a real bottle of shampoo and conditioner, toothbrush and toothpaste. We usually deliver about a hundred bags in the summer to local children’s hospitals.
What are you most proud of in your work?
In 2023, we collaborated with some amazing people in North Carolina at the Martin Truex Foundation that make Dream Racer cars. It’s a replica of a NASCAR car and it’s in a kid form and it’s in the hospital on the inpatient floor.
It’s made for the child to play games. So it’s got a screen and they can put in PS5 games or Nintendo. It has fake wheels on it, so someone can push them around in it like an actual race car. It’s really cool and helps bring some wonderful memories for the kids that are on the inpatient floor.
Another thing that’s really important that we do is advocacy. We’re right on the tip of Indiana, but we’re really close to Chicago. So the closest children’s hospital for a lot of our families is in downtown Chicago, but they have an Indiana address and they would have to travel 200 miles down to Indianapolis, unfortunately, instead of going the 15 miles to Illinois because of their state insurance.
NICK worked with legislators for 10 years on a bill for children that have Medicaid to be accepted at Illinois Hospital because it is so much closer. In 2021 that bill got passed.
What inspires you to keep giving back?
My son. I’m incredibly grateful for his good health. Like I said, I’ve met so many families that did not have a good outcome with childhood cancer. And so meeting them just puts things in perspective.
Is there someone who has inspired you to do this kind of work?
Kate and Donna, they’re the founders of the foundation. I’ve learned so much from them over the past eight years—they’ve been a great motivator and inspiration for me.
What is one thing you wish more people knew about what you’re doing?
I wish people had more awareness about childhood cancer. It’s not as rare as people think. It’s the number one disease killer of our children.
Childhood cancer research does not get the money and attention that it deserves. It gets only 4% of the NIH [National Institutes of Health] budget and we unfortunately lost a lot of funding at the 2024 cut going into 2025. We’ve spent the past ten months trying to work to get that back.
What is one message of encouragement you have for your community?
Give back when you can—even just sharing something on social media. As long as you’re telling someone and getting the word out about an organization that can help somebody, you’re doing a good thing.
If you were going to be one piece of furniture what would you be?
A kitchen table because it brings everybody together. When I was little we always sat down around the kitchen table and it was always just a good time. It’s just really important to sit down together after a busy day and connect as a family. We have game nights and snack nights and we have such a good time.
Do you have any core furniture memories?
When I was little my parents both worked full-time and me and my brother used to go to my grandma’s house all the time. She had these two green couches. Their house was so tiny and packed with so much stuff—tchotchkes and old lady things and crocheted blankets. And I will never forget what the couches looked like. I will never forget how their living room was set up.
What is the best way to build a fort?
So having a son, he used to build a lot of forts. Definitely lots of big blankets, couch cushions, some chairs, pillows, those are obviously the main things.
He was obsessed with them. I mean, even my husband, I would come home from work and they’d both just be like sitting in there. They’d even make a little hole for the TV so you could see the TV through the blankets.
