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Community Corner

Oblock Student Has A Heart for Giving

Victor Flinko, 12, credits his generous nature and wise-beyond-his-years perspective to a battle with leukemia in early childhood. The seventh-grader helps individuals and takes part in events like the upcoming Light the Night walk.

Victor Flinko credits his experience with leukemia as a young child for making him the person he is today.

The 12-year-old Plum resident was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 4. A few years after that, he was done with treatment and cancer-free, but that doesn’t mean that he forgot about the struggles he went through.

“When I went through cancer, during that experience I saw other kids that looked like me, that we were sick,” he said. “I understood it made people upset and sad. I got upset and sad myself, so I decided to do something about it.”

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Among the things that he’s done about it are raising money and providing support to other kids who have been affected by cancer.

He once held a number of fundraisers for a boy he met who was being treated for cancer, Victor said. He sold lemonade at Mallisee Farm in Renton and made bracelets out of pipe cleaners and beads, which he sold for a dollar.

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He’s also worked to help those affected by other types of hardship.

Once, at a school volleyball ball game, he enlisted the help of friends Jake McGraw, Noland Puhalla and Justin McKenna.

The four, all students at Hyde Park Elementary at the time, sold bracelets at the game to raise money for a local family involved in an accident.

Incidentally, some of the family members were at the game, Victor said, so he and his friends were able to give them the money they raised right away.

“They were really shocked and happy and surprised,” he said.

His grandmother, Audrey Flinko, also of Plum, said it’s hard to put into words the special kind of person her grandson is.

“I think with all he’s gone through, he was exposed to a lot,” she said. “It just made him a special child.”

His actions speak louder than words.

In addition to helping out individuals, Victor also participates in events like the Light the Night Walk, a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society fundraiser. The national organization’s Pittsburgh chapter holds its annual event at Heinz Field on the North Side of Pittsburgh.

 He also takes part in the Plum Running Mustang’s run and walk fundraiser.

The latter raises money for leukemia research and takes place each year at Boyce Park. Victor is often one of the event’s grand marshals.

Victor also keeps busy with other activities too.

Currently, the seventh grader at is helping out his junior high’s football teams at their practices and games.

And when he has free time, he helps out with his younger brother, 9-year-old Nick Flinko, at his football practice for the Colts, a Plum midget football team.

Off the field, Victor is looking to be part of his school’s student government.

“My dad has told me, you always want to shoot for the high spot such as president,” he said, “so I guess that’s my objective right now.”

Another goal, he said, is to get into the Reading Hall of Fame at school.

He is looking far beyond junior high as well. When he grows up, Victor said, he would like to become a pediatric nurse.

“Since I got out of the hospital, I knew so much already about what went on there and I thought that would be a good thing for me to do.”

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