Donor Highlight
Olivia Stoy
Olivia Stoy was diagnosed with T-lymphoblastic lymphoma when she was in 6th grade and relapsed when she was in 8th grade. As a Steuben County resident, Olivia was involved with FIST starting in 7th grade when her desire to be a philanthropist began. Along with FIST, she was involved with KEY Club, Mayors Youth Advisory Council, National Honor Society, 4-H, and more during her high school career. Olivia says that “philanthropy is a passion of mine” as she has grown to become an avid philanthropist through these organizations she was involved in. The Steuben County Community Foundation has always been a big part of Olivia’s life and turned out to be more influential than she ever anticipated. At SCCF, Olivia attended FIST meetings, started the Liv It Up Fund, and won the Lily Endowment Community Scholarship which allows her to attend any Indiana college of her choice without paying for tuition expenses.
In the summer of 2018, after Olivia relapsing, she was involved in many community wide fundraisers to raise money for the bone-marrow transplant she needed to survive the illness. The Liv It Up campaign started with block parties and bracelet fundraisers in hopes to raise $350,000. Because of the generous Steuben County community, the Stoy family was able to raise the money needed to complete Olivia’s transplant as well as much more that she was determined to give back to the community. These funds have been able to help over 100 families with a child under the age of 18 with a life-threatening illness since 2019.
The Liv It Up Fund was started at the Steuben County Community Foundation to donate the money raised to the organizations that helped Olivia during her cancer journey. These organizations include Riley Children’s Hospital and Camp Whatcha Wanna Do. The Stoy family decided to create a donor-advised fund to continue to donate and effectively use the money that the community raised to give the biggest impact.
Olivia continues to donate her time and talents to causes that she can directly relate to. Olivia has now completed her freshman year at Butler University where she is studying Psychology, with plans to be a grief counselor for children. In her free time, she has found a place off campus to spend her time serving the homeless of Indianapolis weekly. As part of her Make-a-Wish, Olivia will be releasing a book within the year, called “Liv”, telling her story and sharing the details of her journey.
