Making people smile seems to be Liza Glazer’s superpower. Even childhood cancer couldn’t stop her from spreading joy.
“She was just always just a very positive girl and always wanted to help others. She would see other kids and be like, ‘Oh, let me draw something for them’ and ‘Let's do something for them for my birthday.’ Her favorite thing was to give cupcakes out to the other kids on her floor,” her mother Orlee Glazer said.
Art became a coping tool for Liza Glazer during her treatment. She was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma in 2020 when she was six years old. She had a tumor in her leg and needed surgery to remove it. This surgery meant that her once-active lifestyle would need to be altered while she healed.
“She was normally a very active child, and she needed to find other outlets. Art therapy was huge for her when she was going through chemotherapy and through her surgery, so it was her way of expressing herself. It always has been, but even more so when she was going through treatment," Orlee Glazer said.
Art runs in the family. Liza Glazer’s grandmother is also an artist, and Orlee Glazer feels her talent comes from within. Liza Glazer creates artwork with depth in a variety of mediums.
“She's very modern. She explores the paper, explores the whole image, and creates shapes and things like that rather than something that you can just see," Orlee Glazer said.
On May 19, 2021, Orlee Glazer started an Instagram account, @sharing_smiles_strength, that documented Liza Glazer’s battle. She found it to be beneficial both to her and to people who were struggling in similar ways. Orlee Glazer wanted to create a place where people could see joy through the struggle.
“I shared some of her artwork there and it was a space for me to comprehend what had happened to Liza and to share the smile underneath; to share love and show how there are good things that can come out of this," Orlee Glazer said.
Shortly after posting some of her daughter’s artwork, a family friend asked if she could buy a painting in exchange for a donation to a research foundation. Orlee Glazer was more than willing to make that happen.
“I've always wanted to do that, I just never knew how," Orlee Glazer said. "I went ahead and gave her some artwork and she ended up giving me the money. Then I donated it to the Little Warrior Foundation. She shared it and from her sharing it, more people wanted to buy her artwork.”
The Glazers found the Little Warrior Foundation while Liza Glazer was undergoing treatments. The foundation specifically funds research surrounding Ewing’s Sarcoma, a type of pediatric cancer.
“Ewing’s sarcoma is such a rare, rare cancer," Orlee Glazer said. "There are so many cancers out there that just don't get the funding. Childhood cancers only get 4% of funding, and Ewing’s sarcoma is not even close to that. The Little Warrior Foundation is a relatively new foundation, but it's perfect for our family to help and to spread the word because it's specifically for Ewing’s sarcoma. They've done so much in the few years that they've been in existence, and they're very strictly taking funding for Ewing’s sarcoma research.”
Since their initial sale, Orlee and Liza Glazer have received many more orders for artwork. All of the proceeds have gone to the Little Warrior Foundation.
“It's been great. It's such a great response. Even more people are now responding because more people just shared it that they just got the artwork," Orlee Glazer said.
Liza Glazer has done more than make art this year, though. On April 14, 2021, she was able to ring the bell signifying she was in remission.
“She finished all of her treatment. They call it NED: no evidence of disease," Orlee Glazer said.
The good news provided more motivation for the Glazers’ fight for more awareness surrounding childhood cancer. Since Liza Glazer’s original diagnosis, they have heavily researched many organizations that specifically fund research for childhood cancer.
“There are so many amazing foundations, and they all play a role in helping kids get through this. This one obviously hit home for me because it's about her future and all these kids that are going to get diagnosed in a year or two years from now," Orlee Glazer said.
So far, Liza Glazer has given out around 30 pieces of art to people who have donated to the Little Warrior Foundation, and Orlee Glazer predicts more orders in the future.
After the impressive results of simple posts on Instagram and Facebook, Orlee Glazer has decided to organize a fundraiser through the Little Warrior Foundation that encourages children in the community to sell their artwork in exchange for donations to the foundation.
More information will be available as the fundraiser is finalized.
To make a donation and receive some of Liza Glazer’s artwork, visit www.instagram.com/sharing_smiles_strength or email Orlee Glazer at orleeglazer@gmail.com. You can also visit littlewarrior.org to donate directly to the foundation. Wherever you donate, make sure to contact Orlee Glazer to receive your artwork.