Starboard hosting B+ Foundation fundraiser through May 25

In 2007 at the age of 14, Andrew McDonough, who had six months earlier been full of life, passed away from AML Leukemia.

His family was devastated by the loss, but in the wake of it, they found positivity from Andrew himself. Andrew’s blood type, B-positive or B+, became a symbol for his family of the way that he had lived, being positive, and they quickly turned Andrew’s memory into a lasting legacy by founding the B+ Foundation.

The message is simply for people to be positive in all that they do, and this is the way to honor the memory of Andrew. The mission is benevolent: to give essential funding to childhood cancer research and offer families direct support when they find themselves in the unthinkable scenario of watching a loved one battle childhood cancer. That is what Joe McDonough, Andrew’s father, and his family have been doing since their loss in 2007.

For the ninth consecutive year, The Starboard will team up with LowDigitTags.com and Aaron Dunphy to auction off desirable black license tags. The money goes to the B+ Foundation where families are given a lifeline during one of their darkest times. Over the years, the auctions have pulled in more than $100,000 in funds to support the foundation and give direct help to families in need.

Keith “Toastie” Kirk spearheads the auction with Dunphy, and says it’s easily one of his favorite events of the season. He said, “Every year at the completion of the auctions, Joe tells me exactly how many families we’ll be able to help keep their lights on at their house, or let the parents spend an extra day with their terminally ill child. It’s a tearjerker every time, so I always keep my sunglasses on!”

For more information or to make a donation, go to www.bepositive.org.

To participate in the black tag auction, go to www.ebay.com/usr/bepositivefdn?_trksid=p2047675.l2559 until May 25, when the fundraiser concludes.