When Weinberg sophomore Ritvik Viniak first arrived at Northwestern, he said his life felt “kind of empty.” It was the first time in five years that he had not been involved in the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and there was no chapter on campus.

Viniak took matters into his own hands last spring and founded the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Club at NU with a group of friends. Through fundraising and awareness campaigns, LLS@NU aims to make an impact in the battle against blood cancers.

LLS@NU is a chapter of the larger LLS nonprofit, which seeks to find cures for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, while also providing financial support for patients and their families.

Viniak has been active in LLS since his freshman year of high school; he was first motivated to join after witnessing the support his grandmother received during her own battle with cancer. Viniak raised $45,000 in the LLS Student of the Year program. He then joined a leadership team, where he recruited and mentored students for the same program. 

McCormick sophomore and LLS@NU vice president David Wong helped Viniak found the club last winter. Wong said he was motivated to help start the LLS chapter because of the opportunities for leadership and the prospect of community impact it offered. 

“It’s not often that a student can participate in and lead these large-scale fundraisers,” Wong said. “I wanted to get that experience and gain those types of skills.”

Since its founding last spring, LLS@NU has raised nearly $650 through on-campus fundraising initiatives. Viniak said the club also organized a series of education programs at the Evanston Public Library and two guest speaker events with healthcare professionals. 

This quarter, NU’s chapter is focusing on preparations for LLS’ annual Visionaries of the Year campaign, a variant of the student-specific program Viniak participated in in high school. In the competition, candidates assemble teams and campaign to raise the most money for LLS’ cause, Viniak explained. 

Viniak is one of seven Visionaries of the Year Chicago candidates. He hopes to raise $100,000 with the NU chapter by the end of the 10-week competition through partnerships with local businesses and corporate sponsors.

Weinberg sophomore and LLS@NU fundraising committee chair Eric Mun said he attended last year’s Visionaries of the Year Grand Finale reception in Chicago with Viniak. The event celebrates candidates’ fundraising efforts and spotlights local blood cancer survivors called Honored Heroes.

“Hearing the Honored Heroes talk about their experience surviving blood cancer, and how they’re so grateful for LLS’ fundraising efforts, just touched me,” Mun said.

Mun said the event remains a highlight of his experience in the club. He said it underscored the importance of LLS’ work in providing hope and support for cancer patients. 

Along with Visionaries of the Year, the club plans to organize outreach programs to local schools in the upcoming quarters, Viniak said. Viniak added that LLS members will also have the chance to participate in research on the scope of nanotechnology in cancer treatment, in partnership with a professor at Feinberg School of Medicine.

“To me, it’s really exciting to be able to be part of — hopefully — the last generation to see cancer,” Viniak said.

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