2025 Impact Report
Connection and Compassion When it Matters Most
2025 Impact
In 2025, Zach’s Bridge continued our mission to ensure that no parent or caregiver has to face late-stage pediatric cancer or bereavement alone. Through 1:1 peer support, we connected families in their hardest moments with someone who truly understands.
It was a year of transformative growth, outpacing our initial projections of demand and scale. This was only possible with your trust and support, and we were able to expand the systems and resources needed. The organization looks remarkably different, better and stronger than we did at the start of 2025.
We are poised to expand and support even more families in 2026. Thank you to everyone in the Zach’s Bridge community for collaborating with us in 2025.
Jenn and Jon Wall
Cofounders | Zach’s Parents
Stories of Impact
Behind every connection is a family, a conversation, and a moment of compassion that changed someone’s life. Hear directly from parents, social workers and peer mentors about what Zach’s Bridge means.
Why Zach's Bridge Exists
Families facing late-stage pediatric cancer and child loss are often surrounded by medical care—but emotionally isolated. Many parents and caregivers say the hardest part is not having someone who truly understands what they’re going through.
Zach’s Bridge exists to fill that gap. We provide 1:1 peer support from trained parents and caregivers who have lived this journey themselves—offering connection, empathy, and path forward when it’s needed most.
Real Connection, One Family at a Time
Zach’s Bridge does not offer scheduled support groups. Every match is personal.
Support seekers are paired with a trained peer mentor who has walked a similar path. These relationships unfold through calls, texts, and messages—as needed, sometimes over months of ongoing support.
In 2025, those conversations added up to more than 10,000 minutes of parents supporting parents—sharing, listening, and helping one another feel less alone.
The App for the Zach's Bridge Community - The Resource Explorer
Launched in April 2025, the Zach’s Bridge Resource Explorer is the only tool focused entirely on families in late-stage or bereavement from pediatric cancer. It dramatically simplifies the search experience and displays results using our ranking to help ensure the ones we know are great are at the top of the list – all saving time for parents, caregivers and providers.
What We Are Working On for 2026
As we enter our fourth year, we are setting bold goals—including doubling the number of families we support in 2026. With new programs, partnerships, and technology, we are just getting started. Be on the lookout for updates to the Resource Explorer, new impact stories, and innovative partnerships with hospitals and pediatric cancer nonprofits to help expand and support parents, caregivers, their families, providers and the entire pediatric cancer community.
We are so grateful for your support in making 2025 possible, and we cannot do it without you going forward.
In the Community
In 2025, we briefed more than 50 different organizations about Zach’s Bridge. We attended and spoke at multiple conferences, podcasts and events, and facilitated in person and virtual cancer support programs and groups. It was great to meet so many of you for the first time, or see you again.
We hope to see you in person or online in 2026 at conferences and events, or online on podcasts and webinars. Here are some of the places we’ll be in 2026.
- We are exhibiting and speaking at the Association of Pediatric Oncology Social Workers Conference in Denver – April 12-15.
- The 5th Annual Zach Wall Blood Drive, takes place on April 7, 2026
- APHON Metro Minnesota Annual Conference, April 27, 2026
- APHON 2026 National Conference in Memphis, September 2026
- SAVE THE DATE: Building Bridges Dinner and Auction, Saturday, October 3, 2026 in Chestnut Hill, MA
👉 Check out the podcasts, where we’ve been and where you can find us later this year.
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