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Our story
United for Hope, Advancing Cures
Kiona Foundation was founded in 2003 in honor of Kiona T. Jenkins. The story changed as the family changed. The mission grew with it.
In chronological order
Three lives shaped the Foundation at different times. Each belongs in the story without turning the Foundation into a memorial alone.
2003
Kiona Foundation was founded in 2003 in honor of Kiona T. Jenkins. Kiona's life gave the Foundation its name and its first purpose.
The Foundation carries that purpose into research and charitable work for people and families affected by cancer.
2018
Dr. Lakisha Jenkins-Samuels lost her sister, Merika, in 2018. Her loss further shaped a mission that reaches beyond any one age group.
Cancer touches children, adults, and the families who care for them. The Foundation's work must do the same.
2020
Kiona's sister, Carlene O.J. Samuels, was born in 2020, nearly twenty years after the Foundation began. Her life expanded the legacy the Foundation now carries forward.
Carlene transitioned in 2024. Her full remembrance is held within Every Ribbon Has a Name.
What the story built
Kiona Foundation advances research and pursues better options for people and families affected by cancer across the lifespan.
Childhood cancer remains part of that work. It is not the whole of it.