Drawing Contest at Festival4Family 2026: Young Guests at the Dr. Petra Joh Research House
At Festival4Family 2026, we invited visitors to our booth to take part in a big drawing contest, and many children joined in with great creativity and joy. They drew with children in mind who are facing difficult times—children with cancer. Every drawing was unique, and each one touched our hearts.
The ten best drawings in each age category were selected, and the young winners were invited to join us along with their parents. But there were no losers: the other young artists also received a consolation LEGO set sent to their homes.
A Special Afternoon at the Dr. Petra Joh Research Center
The winners came to visit us—with sparkling eyes and that excited energy children have when they know something special is happening today. At the Dr. Petra Joh Research Center, we presented them with their prize LEGO sets.
What followed was much more than just an awards ceremony. The children explored, asked questions, and listened. And their parents, too, took a genuine interest in our work: What happens in the labs? What kind of research is being done? What does it mean that around 80 percent of children with cancer can be cured today—and why do we continue to fight for the other 20 percent? Our research group leader, PD Dr. Meike Vogler, vividly explained what cancer is and what measures we’re taking to effectively combat it.
What this afternoon showed us
Pediatric cancer research isn’t an abstract science. It affects children and families. It represents the future.
Afternoons like this one remind us what it means to be a happy child—and why we must never stop fighting to ensure that children affected by cancer can experience exactly that.
Congratulations to all the winners. Your drawings will remain with the foundation.
A big thank you to all the parents for their genuine interest, their questions, and their appreciation. And to the Festival4Family team for giving us the opportunity to be part of this special day.
Research helps find cures. If you’d like to support our work, please donate now—and help advance childhood cancer research one step further.
