Home Sandy's Project Hope

Sandy's Project Hope

A program born from love — bringing hope, compassion, and community to every person navigating a cancer diagnosis. Named in honor of Sandy Sledge, founding board member and devoted champion of Rexanna's Foundation.

Sandy Sledge
In Her Honor Sandy Sledge Jan 5, 1957 – Jan 4, 2023
Sandy Sledge with Rexanna's Foundation
Sandy Sledge
Sandy at an event
Sandy with family
Her Story

More Than a
Board Member — Family

Sandy and Rexanna were best friends long before they were colleagues in a cause. They met in their senior year of high school, became instant friends, and roomed together at Baylor University, where Sandy earned her Bachelor of Science in Education and met the love of her life, David.

They traveled together, took annual beach trips — they were college roommates. They were family.

— On Sandy & Rexanna's friendship

Sandy served as Vice President of Rexanna's Foundation from its founding until she passed away in January 2023. She was a tireless advocate — traveling alongside Executive Director Lisa Spain to LungCAN conferences, learning the latest in research, and building national collaborations that would give Rexanna's Foundation a platform far beyond Austin.

In every room she entered, Sandy made every acquaintance feel like her best friend. She spread laughter and light, carried a resolute faith, and brought an affinity for the biggest and brightest of everything — clothing, jewelry, décor, and life itself. Her availability to fill a need knew no bounds.

She inspired every life she touched, leaving behind a community rooted in love, strength, and purpose.
Sandy Sledge with Rexanna's Foundation community at an event
Get Involved

Ways to Participate

Whether you're navigating a diagnosis, caring for a loved one, or ready to give your time and heart — there's a place for you in Sandy's Project Hope.

Sign Up as a Cancer Patient

Currently going through treatment? Enroll to receive weekly handwritten Rally Cards — personal notes of encouragement from people who genuinely care. You deserve to know that people are in your corner, rooting for you every single week.

Enroll as a Recipient
Sign Up as a Caregiver

Caring for someone with cancer is one of the most selfless acts a person can give. Caregivers carry enormous weight — and they deserve encouragement too. Sign up to receive your own weekly Rally Cards so you know you are not alone in this walk.

Enroll as a Caregiver
Rally as a Volunteer

Do you have a few minutes each week and a heart that wants to make a real difference? Become a Rally Card Writer. You will be matched with one patient, write one card per week, and give someone the knowledge that they are seen, valued, and cheered on.

Sign Up to Write
Our Purpose

Rexanna's Foundation created Sandy's Project Hope to model what Sandy built — a division devoted entirely to bringing hope and love to those navigating the hardest battle of their lives.

Cancer is hard. One of the hardest kinds of hard. Having someone walk alongside you — cheering you on, showing up week after week — makes the unbearable more bearable. That is the heart of Sandy's Project Hope.

What We Do

Three Pillars of Hope

Sandy's Project Hope channels support through three interconnected programs — each designed to reduce isolation, increase awareness, and keep hope alive.

Awareness & Outreach
The Pat Hood Rally Cards

Cancer patients face every appointment, every setback, and every small victory — often without realizing how many people are rooting for them. Our Rally Card Writers change that. Each writer is matched one-on-one with a cancer patient and commits to writing a personal, handwritten card every single week — keeping hope alive through words when it's needed most.

Writers keep hope alive in patients as they navigate the ups and downs of this relentless disease. The commitment is simple: one card, one week, one life at a time.

Lung Cancer Advocacy
Amplifying the Fight Nationally

Lung cancer receives significantly less research funding than other cancers despite being the leading cause of cancer death. Sandy's Project Hope actively works to change that — raising public awareness, increasing research funding, and advocating on behalf of patients and families at the highest levels.

Our advocacy includes active membership in the LungCAN organization, where Rexanna's Foundation connects with researchers, policy makers, and advocates from across the country to push forward the science that saves lives.

Patient Support
Presence at MD Anderson

For many patients, a visit to MD Anderson Cancer Center can feel overwhelming — long days in waiting rooms, difficult conversations, and miles from home. Rexanna's Foundation is there to help make it a little easier.

Our outreach team provides direct patient support during visits, bringing encouragement, resources, and a familiar face to those who need it most. No patient should feel alone in that fight — and with Sandy's Project Hope, they won't.

Fund Sandy's Legacy

Keep Hope
Moving Forward

Sandy gave everything she had to this mission — her time, her passion, her heart. Your donation to Sandy's Project Hope honors that legacy by ensuring that patients and caregivers continue to receive the love and encouragement they deserve throughout treatment.

Every dollar funds handwritten hope — cards, outreach, advocacy, and patient support that changes the experience of fighting cancer.

Sandy Sledge