LOCAL SPOTLIGHT: Cassidy Honors New Orleans Native Walker Beery’s Legacy During Pediatric Brain Cancer Awareness Month

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), for his monthly Local Spotlight, honored the legacy of New Orleans native Walker Beery and his family's work through Kids Join the Fight during Pediatric Brain Cancer Awareness Month. Walker's story is a reminder that even the smallest act of kindness can make a lasting difference. Each month, Cassidy highlights a local story that truly reflects Louisiana values of humility, respect, and resiliency.

Read his full September 2026 Local Spotlight below:

This month's Local Spotlight recognizes September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, in particular, Pediatric Brain Cancer Awareness Month.

Behind every pediatric cancer diagnosis is a child and family whose lives are forever changed.

One story I want to share today is that of New Orleans native Walker Beery and his family.

At just seven years old, Walker was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a pediatric brain cancer.

During one of his days in the hospital, another little girl also receiving treatment gave Walker a teddy bear.

She was going through a difficult time herself, but still wanted to do something kind for someone else.

This small act inspired Walker to do the same, in an even bigger way.

And Kids Join the Fight was born.

Walker dreamed of raising a million dollars to help others and cure pediatric brain cancer.

Although sadly Walker passed away on September 4, 2021, before he could reach his goal, his family was determined to finish what he started.

Before the end of that same year, Kids Join the Fight had raised the million dollars Walker dreamed of.

And they kept going.

What started as a grassroots effort led by Walker and his friends has grown into an organization helping families, advancing the fight against pediatric cancer, and providing grants to families across the country.

And perhaps most importantly, it continues to give children a chance to do what Walker did.

Help someone else.

Now, Walker's legacy is taking shape in a very special way right in Louisiana.

This November, Walker's Imaginarium will open at Manning Family Children's Hospital in New Orleans.

It will give patients and their families a bright, happy place to play, laugh, and experience just a bit of normalcy during an incredibly difficult time.

Because even when a child is sick, they still deserve to be a child.

That is what makes Walker's story so powerful.

He was a seven-year-old boy who received a teddy bear and decided to then help others.

And years later, his family has turned that simple act of kindness into a movement.

This September, we remember Walker, children like Walker, and the families who fight alongside them.

And we celebrate a little boy from New Orleans whose kindness continues to make an impact on many.

May we all learn to walk with courage, gratefulness, and generosity during hard times.

Just as seven-year-old Walker Beery did.

Background

In August, Cassidy commemorated the twenty-first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina by highlighting the partnership between Franklin Avenue Baptist Church and First Baptist New Orleans, illustrating the deep sense of community that binds Louisianans together.

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