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For Isabella Pavlides, what began as a heartfelt team fundraiser has evolved into a personal mission—and a powerful platform for change.

In 2023, Isabella was a junior at Bucknell University and a key player on the school’s field hockey team. That season, she helped organize a Play4TheCure event alongside her teammates and their parents to raise funds for the National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR). Inspired by her grandmother Esther’s courageous battle with breast and pancreatic cancer, Isabella embraced the cause as her own. The event was more than a game—it was a tribute to a woman who lived seven full years beyond a two-month prognosis, showing strength, faith, and a refusal to give up.

Though she was only eleven years old when her grandmother passed, Isabella still remembers her warmth, her strength, and the lasting impact she had on their family. That memory—of love, of loss, and of hope—is what continues to drive her.

What made the campaign even more powerful was the teamwork behind it. Isabella’s mother, Shereen Pavlides—a chef and social media influencer—used her platforms to raise money, offer giveaways, and share personal stories that resonated with thousands. But it was Isabella who stayed at the center of it all, rallying her peers, organizing logistics, and building a community around a cause that felt deeply personal.

That passion didn’t end at graduation.

Today, Isabella serves as a proud Community Ambassador for NFCR, and she’s using her voice and creativity to push the mission further. Under the banner Prevention with Pavlides, she’s launching a summer-long fundraising campaign—hosting events and partnering with local businesses to raise funds for groundbreaking cancer research. Focusing on Dine & Donates, Isabella is blending her love of sport, community, and advocacy into action that matters.

In 2024, her commitment even earned her a place on stage at NFCR’s Global Summit and Award Ceremonies for Cancer Research & Entrepreneurship, where she joined a panel of survivors, world-renowned scientists, and a Nobel Prize winner in a discussion about the future of cancer research.

Her work is ongoing, and her message is clear: Cancer has touched her life, but it doesn’t define it. Instead, she’s choosing to lead, to advocate, and to make cures possible for all.

You can follow Isabella’s journey and support her campaign by keeping up with her events on Instagram at PreventionwithPavlides.

Because for Isabella Pavlides, this isn’t just a fundraiser—it’s a commitment to something bigger than herself.