Sam Thompson, a junior at Arapahoe High School, has won the title of Student of the Year Runner Up for his successful 2021 fundraising campaign for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). Sam raised $112,576 and is just the third Colorado Student of the Year candidate to cross the $100,000 threshold. He currently holds 2nd place overall in the campaign among 48 candidate teams over the last four years.

Kelli Anderson, campaign development manager for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, said, “Sam is an incredible young man who shines with such passion and maturity that you don’t always see in high school students. He should be celebrated for this amazing leadership endeavor and his courage in signing on for this campaign in such a tumultuous year.”

The Student of the Year fundraising campaign “is a seven-week philanthropic leadership development program during which students foster professional skills such as entrepreneurship, marketing, and project management in order to raise funds for LLS, a global leader in the fight against cancer...The funds raised benefit LLS, whose mission is to find a cure for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and myeloma, and to improve the quality of life of patients and their families,” Ms. Anderson added.

Congratulations on your title, Sam, and thank you for your passionate dedication to and support of LLS!