Live Like Bella was established in 2013 in memory of Bella Rodriguez-Torres, a young girl who passed away at the age of 10 after a long battle with cancer. During her six-year fight, Bella inspired people around the world to live with compassion and serve others.
In her honor the foundation provides financial support to families in 49 states and 38 countries and has funded 66 research trials totaling $37 million in hopes of finding a cure.
The Live Like Bella Childhood Cancer Foundation is committed to being a recognized leader in childhood cancer research and advocacy while providing financial and emotional support to families whose children are battling cancer.
The foundation helps with mortgage/rent payments, medical co-pays, medications, utilities, transportation costs, groceries, and numerous other unexpected expenses.
In the unfortunate circumstance that a child with cancer passes, Live Like Bella assists with the costs of memorial services including burials, headstones, funerals, etc.
As of 2024, the Live Like Bella Pediatric Cancer Research Initiative created by the Florida Legislature has provided $37,000,000 in grants for 66 pediatric cancer research trials at 10 renowned institutions across the state.
Bella Rodriguez-Torres was born on Thursday, December 12, 2002, to her parents, Shannah and Raymond Rodriguez-Torres in Miami, FL. Despite having low oxygen at birth, Bella was a happy and healthy baby.
On July 11, 2007, Bella awoke one night suddenly unable to move. Her family rushed her to Nicklaus Children's Hospital to find out what was happening to their little girl.
Just six days later, they received the devastating news that Bella had stage four rhabdomyosarcoma, only a few months to live, and would be unable to walk for the remainder of her life.
Despite being told her odds, she miraculously regained the ability to walk and run, bravely battling cancer for six years!
On February 9, 2013, six years into her treatment, Bella Rodriguez-Torres underwent an 18-hour surgery at MD Anderson in Houston, TX, to save her life after a widespread cancer relapse in her abdomen.
The following day, Bella’s mom posted on social media:
"Bella Believers, it’s a beautiful morning in Houston. Bella is currently in a coma and can’t go out and enjoy what she usually does on such a sunny day. So in her honor, go out and #LiveLikeBella!" It was then that the #LiveLikeBella hashtag was born.
Bella fought bravely for six years and passed peacefully in her home on May 28, 2013.
On the night of her passing, Bella Believers shared her story and tweeted to Dwyane Wade and LeBron James during the NBA Finals, asking them to honor Bella. They saw it and wrote #LiveLikeBella on their shoes, and the story went viral.
Bella’s family didn’t know it yet, but this moment marked the beginning of a movement.
On June 10, 2013, the Live Like Bella® Foundation was established, becoming a leader in research and advocacy while providing support to families whose children are battling cancer. Thanks to you, those families have received over $8 MILLION in financial assistance.
Our inaugural Bella’s Ball was held in September of 2014 and was the first of many events at which Bella Believers were brought together to honor children battling cancer. Today, we host other annual events including our Superhero 5K, Pediatric Cancer Research Symposium, and Celebration of Gratitude.
In 2016, the Live Like Bella Pediatric Proton Radiation Program at the Miami Cancer Institute opened. This alliance with Memorial Sloan Kettering brought access to cutting-edge healthcare for children that need targeted treatments as they battle cancer.
Live Like Bella started in the garage of the Rodriguez-Torres home and in 2017, thanks to the generosity of Pablo Cejas and Ascendant Insurance Solutions, we got our first office.
Visitors walk in and see a beautiful mural featuring stories about Bella’s life and the ways to #LiveLikeBella which are:
Wear red
Show compassion
Pray for others
Eat s’mores
Belly laugh really loud
Sing at the top of your lungs
See a show
Play an instrument
Sing Jesus songs
Pray all the time
Cuddle
Take a bubble bath
Say “mmm” when something tastes really good
Ride “It’s A Small World” at Disney World
In 2018, Florida became the first state in the nation to allocate funds specifically for pediatric cancer research through the Live Like Bella Pediatric Cancer Research Initiative. To date, it has funded over $37 million for 66 trials at the following institutions:
USF Health
University of Miami Health System
FAU College of Medicine
Miami Cancer Institute
FIU
Moffitt Cancer Center
Nemours Children’s Health
UF Health
In 2018 and 2019, the State of Florida and Miami-Dade County both awarded funds to Live Like Bella to fuel our in-treatment and memorial support programs.
To date, we’ve received over $4 million from them to provide much-needed assistance to families impacted by childhood cancer across the State of Florida.
The State of Florida’s Capitol lit in gold for the very first time.
Following a challenging year after COVID-19, we were grateful to have a historic and epic 2021.
- The State of Florida Capitol was lit in gold – the color representing the brave children battling this disease – to help bring awareness to the cause.
- Live Like Bella was slowly but surely able to reinstate events and continue serving families around the world.
By 2022, Live Like Bella was assisting families in 49 states and 36 countries!