Livingston nonprofit has given $1M to those in need since 2017
BRIGHTON — A local soccer coach who founded a nonprofit to help others reached a major milestone Tuesday.
Fund A Life, founded by Mark Howell in 2017, has granted more than $1 million to individuals facing medical and other life-altering challenges. He celebrated surrounded by grant recipients, donors and friends Tuesday at the Brighton Coffee House and Theater.
Starting the nonprofit was an effort by Howell to pay forward the generosity he saw during his battle with Stage 4 Melanoma. He learned about the 18-pound tumor in his stomach at 30 years old. He didn't expect to live more than eight months. He's now a more than 10-year cancer survivor.
"It's a feeling of accomplishment in that I was able to use my own journey to help inspire more people to help other people and just continue that momentum," Howell told The Daily before giving his speech Tuesday.
"It's a little bit of a mixed bag, because there's always more people to help," he said. "I try to focus on the impact we have made."
Fund A Life granted seven new recipients a total of $35,000 on Tuesday, pushing the nonprofit over the $1 million mark.
"We gave away our first million dollars in seven years," Howell said. "I really want to give away our next million dollars in the next 18 months."
Grant recipients Tuesday include cancer survivors, a teacher in need of a cochlear implant, and families of children with medical needs.
Ashley Setty and her family received a grant to help cover the cost of therapies for their son Kaiden, who they adopted in 2020. Kaiden, 6, was born with a brain bleed and hydrocephalus and lives with physical and cognitive challenges.
"His entire life has been surgeries and therapy," Setty said during a speech Tuesday. "When we got his diagnosis at six months old, he was expected to never be able to walk, talk, or do anything. Now he talks almost age appropriately. He walks with a walker."
Kaiden says he'll walk on his own one day.
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"All of those therapies that work for him are not covered by insurance," Setty said "So, this is just a huge blessing, and I just want to do everything in my power to help him reach his fullest potential."
Jennifer Tipsword, a breast cancer survivor from Brighton, received another of the grants.
Tipsword had to have entire ribs, damaged by radiation, removed. She's had to take time off as a server at Stillwater Grill, and her longtime partner last year suffered serious injuries to his leg and foot after falling from the roof.
"It helps immensely," she said.
— Contact reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Livingston nonprofit has given $1M to those in need since 2017
