The Story Behind the Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial Fund
The Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial Fund has stood beside families navigating some of the most difficult seasons imaginable for 50 years! The story began with Peggy’s daughter, Kelly Anne, who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia at a young age and spent years enduring hospitalizations, blood transfusions, emergency visits, and medical uncertainty. During those years, Peggy began seeing another side of childhood illness... the financial and emotional pressure placed on entire families. Parents were missing work, struggling to afford transportation and parking, losing jobs, falling behind on bills, and sometimes facing the possibility of losing their homes. At the same time, Peggy’s own family was surrounded by extraordinary kindness from relatives, friends, strangers, and blood donors, leaving her with what she described as a deep sense of gratitude.
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When Kelly Anne’s condition later developed into a rare form of leukemia and the family learned her illness was terminal, Peggy and her husband decided to create a fund in her memory. Importantly, that work began before Kelly Anne passed away. They already knew exactly where families were falling through the cracks and wanted to help cover needs that insurances often did not... everything from household expenses to burial costs. Peggy entered nonprofit work without experience or a blueprint, but that original mission continued to grow through persistence, community support, networking, social workers, volunteers, donors, and organizations that believed in what the Fund was trying to accomplish.
The organization’s 50+ year journey has not been without uncertainty. Peggy recalled periods when funding dropped dramatically, including the aftermath of September 11, when donations slowed while the needs of families increased. She also faced the difficult question of what would happen when she could no longer personally lead an organization carrying her daughter’s name. Leadership transitions were not simply business decisions; they involved trust, legacy, and the responsibility of protecting what Kelly Anne’s name had come to represent. Yet the Fund endured, and Peggy later emphasized one of the most important lessons of its longevity: meaningful impact is never created alone. Networks, board members, social workers, community partners, and supporters all played a role in helping the organization survive and grow.
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Connect with the Kelly Anne Dolan Memorial Fund:
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/dolanfund/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/fb.kadmf
LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/kelly-anne-dolan-memorial-fund/
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@DolanFund
Ways to Donate:
https://dolanfund.org/ways-to-donate/
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