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Mom of teen who died of cancer holds gift card drive for Mary Bridge Children Hospital in his memory

It’s been six years since Nick Konkler, 17, died after a hard fought battle with cancer. Every year, around the anniversary of his passing, his mom and friends fundraise in his memory. This year, they’re focusing on the teens at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma who are going through cancer treatment.

“The teenagers at Mary Bridge, they have a program. For every poke you get, because these kids get poked a lot, there’s a little incentive program. Each poke, you get to earn a chip. And when you have four chips, you get to pick out of a prize box. Well, teenagers are impossible to shop for. So the solution was gift cards,” Konkler explained.

Nick’s mom remembers how a simple $10 gift card was priceless to her son when he was at the hospital.

“He could shop on his own, give him a little independence. When the kids are on treatment, they don’t have a lot of independence. Everything is kind of dictated by the protocol. So the advantage of having a little independence and being able to pick out what you want at the store - at that point in their life is a big deal,” she explained.

In 2015, KIRO 7 showed you how Nick designed IV pole lily pads to help little kids fighting cancer. He died before he could make them, but his family and friends at Auburn Riverside High School brought his dream to life. And they haven’t stopped.

“It actually is a comfort, not having him here, to be able to do things in his name. He was very worried that he hadn’t made an impact but I think we’ve proven that he has,” Konkler said.

His mom has created a GoFundMe page to raise money to buy gift cards.

Gibs Coffee at 1148 East Main St in Auburn is also accepting gift cards and offering a free 16 oz drink in exchange.