Newport twins buy toys for hospitalized kids

Newport Beach twins Syd and Zach Cohen have raised more than $6,500 to buy toys for children in the pediatric cancer units at UCLA Medical Center and Children’s Hospital of Orange County.

It’s a tradition started, in part, as a mitzvah project, a social endeavor tied to Jewish children’s coming-of-age ceremonies. Syd and Zach will turn 13 on Sunday.

But the project was personal for the twins. Last year, a friend was diagnosed with primitive neuroectodermal tumor, or PNET, a rare form of cancer related to Ewing’s sarcoma that mainly strikes young children and teenagers. The siblings, both in seventh grade at Corona del Mar Middle School, had known the boy, Austin, since they were babies.

“I felt very sad because he is a close family friend and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone,” Syd said. “My mom cried when she told me.”

They watched Austin, who also is 12 and goes to school in Irvine, endure round after round of chemotherapy. Doctors removed Austin’s kidney, only to learn that the disease had spread to his bones.

“At first I was super worried and didn’t understand how a kid could get cancer,” Zach said. “I talked to my parents a lot to understand what he was going through.”

Last summer, the twins posted a video online asking for help. They called their campaign “Twinz Team, One Dream.”

The siblings had encountered childhood illness before. Their older brother, Devon, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 11. Their father also has the disease, which is genetic.

Three years ago, Devon used his bar mitzvah project to donate 200 teddy bears wearing medical ID bracelets around their necks to Children’s Hospital of Orange County. He also raised almost $30,000 for diabetes research.

Now it’s Syd and Zach’s turn to do the giving. They’ve raised $6,670 — more than their $5,000 goal. With some pointers from a hospital official and help from Mom and Dad, the two bought all manner of goodies — from Xbox 360 video game units to coloring books.

Some of the items will serve as prizes meant to encourage hospitalized children to participate in daily exercises such as walking hospital corridors to aid their recovery and boost their spirits.

The twins expect to deliver the toys shortly after their b’nai mitzvah on Saturday.

They credit their parents, who raise money for diabetes research, for teaching them the value of good deeds. Even at their young age, they don’t take their health for granted, they said.

Both look forward to delivering the toys.

“I will feel like I made a difference and maybe make their day a little better,” Syd said.

As for Austin, he’s back at school and doing well, according to Syd and Zach’s mother, Kim.