Our Story

It started with Austie. It grew into something more.

A.STRONG began the way a lot of good things do — with a community deciding to show up for one of its own.

2013: A diagnosis, and a community that showed up

In 2013, Austin was diagnosed with childhood cancer. What happened next says everything about this community: friends and family didn’t wait to be asked. They organized.

About a month after the diagnosis, the first golf tournament was held. It was equal parts fundraiser and rallying point — a day for people who loved Austin to be together and do something.

Two young boys sit side by side on a bench along a sunny path, a bright blue sand pail on the bench beside each of them; the boy on the left has no hair and holds a bag of ring-shaped candy, and the boy on the right wears a denim shirt and cowboy boots.

A tournament becomes a tradition

That first year became a second, and then a third. The golf tournament turned into an annual tradition, carried forward by golfers, volunteers, sponsors, family, and friends who kept coming back.

Along the way it grew past the golf course — T-shirts, gatherings, and a steady group of people who made it part of their year.

A woman speaks into a handheld microphone and reads from a sheet of paper at a golf tournament, with a long line of golf carts and participants lined up behind her on a sunny day.

From Austie Strong to A.STRONG

Austin is grown now, and the mission has grown with him. Over the years A.STRONG became bigger than one event and bigger than one child.

The name changed, but not the spirit. It started with Austie. It grew into something stronger — a community built to stand with families facing childhood cancer.

A family of four stands together on a putting green beside the flagstick, holding putters, with a harbor, sailboats, and a red-and-white lighthouse in the background.

Where the mission stands today

Today, A.STRONG supports families facing childhood cancer from two directions — helping meet the needs families are facing right now, while also investing in the research that can improve care for children in the future.

We support pediatric cancer research at Children’s Mercy Kansas City, helping advance the work being done to better understand childhood cancers and develop more effective treatments. We also support Supporting Kids Foundation, which helps Kansas City families cover essential household expenses like rent, utilities and groceries while a child is in care.

Eight people in golf attire do push-ups in a row on a golf course fairway, hands on the grass and smiling toward the camera, under a bright sky with scattered clouds.

Children’s Mercy Kansas City

Helping fund the future of childhood cancer care.

A.STRONG supports pediatric cancer research at Children’s Mercy Kansas City, helping advance the work being done to better understand childhood cancers and develop more effective treatments for kids. Our support helps invest in the discoveries that can lead to better care, better outcomes and more hope for families facing childhood cancer.

Supporting Kids Foundation

Supporting Kids Foundation helps Kansas City families facing pediatric cancer by helping cover essential household expenses such as rent, utilities, and groceries.

200+ Kansas City families face pediatric cancer each year
$5.1M+ distributed to families since 2009
1,000+ families helped

Source: Supporting Kids Foundation

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A Tradition of Strength

Be part of the tradition

Every ticket, shirt, and donation keeps this going for the next family.

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