Six-year-old Elena left notes in her mom’s briefcase and her dad’s backpack.

There were many written messages from the little girl before she died from brain cancer in 2007.

“She hid some between books on the bookshelf, in the corners of our dresser drawers or between dishes in the china cabinet,” her father Keith Desserich wrote in the book he and his wife Brooke penned — “Notes Left Behind.”

“Each note deliberately left professing her love for her family. They are constant reminders of her determination and her inspiration. She knew somehow that one day we would need them to continue,” he said.

Keith and Brooke Desserich started “The Cure Starts Now,” a nonprofit cancer foundation dedicated to a “home run” cure for all cancers, starting first with one of the most deadly and difficult cancers: pediatric brain cancer.

There is a sweet way to help: by purchasing a scoop of Elena’s Blueberry Pie from Graeter’s Ice Cream in Castle Shannon or the Wexford location, open via drive thru, during Cones For The Cure Sept. 10-20. A portion of proceeds will be donated to “The Cure Starts Now.”

Elena’s Blueberry Pie is back! Our rich ice cream base is loaded with real blueberries and pie crust pieces for a one of a kind blueberry pie flavored ice cream.

A portion of the proceeds from this flavor will support the @CureStartsNow? pic.twitter.com/Hixm84czRH

— Graeter's Ice Cream (@graeters) September 1, 2020

The special flavor was created by Elena’s family in support of the foundation to find the cure for childhood cancer.

Graeter’s Ice Cream, a 150-year-old, family-owned craft ice cream company, collaborates with the foundation for this campaign. The blueberry pie ice cream has become an annual event for Graeter’s, said Chip Graeter, a fourth-generation co-owner of Graeter’s.

“We created this special ice cream flavor more than a decade ago and have been committed to this cause ever since,” he said.

Customers and employees have been receptive to the fundraiser, said Castle Shannon store manager Marcus Cox. When he reads some of Elena’s notes from the book, it brings tears, he said. Employees often donate their tips. Last year, the company donated $200,000, Cox said.

The ice cream is made with sugar-infused blueberries and pie crust pieces. The crust gives it a little bit of a crunch, he said.

“This is so wonderful to be a part of this,” Cox said. “There have been children with brain cancer who have stopped in the store and when you meet them it puts everything in perspective.”

JoAnne Klimovich Harrop | Tribune-Review Graeter’s Ice Cream is hosting “Cones For The Cure” to benefit “The Cure Starts Now,” a nonprofit cancer foundation dedicated to finding a cure for pediatric brain cancer. Buy a scoop of “Elena’s Blueberry Pie Ice Cream” and support the cause.  

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