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Spirits for Strength Celebrates in Schenectady

By Natalie Moore

March 26, 2019

On February 2, the Shellstrong Foundation, a nonprofit whose simple mission is to help kids in need, hosted its 8th Annual Spirits For Strength Celebration at Key Hall at Schenectady’s Proctors. The Shellstrong Foundation began as an all-night walkathon in 2010 at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School (BH-BL) to honor Jacob Shell, a ten-year-old BH-BL student who had been fighting a rare childhood cancer, and his family. Two months later, Jacob was declared cancer free, and the idea for a foundation was born. This year’s Spirits For Strength Celebration, at which an 18-year-old Jacob performed with his band, The Paper Plates, raised more than $50,000 for the Melodies Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at Albany Medical Center, the Double H Ranch, local scholarships and families in need.

Natalie Moore

Natalie Moore is the editor of Saratoga Living and Capital Region Living magazines. A native of Ballston Lake, she began her career as an editorial intern at Saratoga Living, and, essentially, never left. In addition to overseeing the creation of the print magazines, she is the main contributor to Saratoga Living After Hours, a Substack newsletter that covers the Spa City’s social scene. In an alternate reality, she is a professional pickleball player.