Her Goal Was to Graduate Middle School Before Cancer Took Her. Now Her Memory Helps Other 8th Graders

Gianna "Gigi" Valentin died of cancer in 2022 at age 14, and now her mother carries on her legacy of compassion

While she endured surgeries, radiation and chemotherapy for her brain tumor, Gianna “Gigi” Valentin set a goal: She would graduate from middle school before she died.

“Gigi” had been diagnosed with cancer at the age of 8 in 2016, but she’d loved school since she was a small child, and her excitement about learning didn’t fade despite her ordeal. Her mother, Nikki Jimenez, remembers her reading advanced novels in 4th grade while receiving treatment. By the time she was in middle school in her hometown of Bayonne, N.J., she was an honor roll student.

That was Gigi, says Nikki: ever curious, unconquerable.

“She always wanted to know the details of what was happening to her,” Nikki says. “All of the surgeries, the logistics of the medication — she’d ask questions and wanted to know it all.”

Gigi made her family proud with her accomplishments, and she inspired them with her mindset. The cancer had been devastating to the family, both emotionally and financially. They’d been evicted shortly after her diagnosis and temporarily had to move in with a cousin. Paying for medication, along with the expense and time commitment of taking Gigi to treatment, was crushing.

With bills piling up, Gigi’s family connected with the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund, the charity founded by the Super Bowl-winning NFL coach that supports families of children battling cancer. Since its founding in 1996, the Jay Fund has provided approximately $20 million to more than 5,600 families with children suffering from cancer in the New York City and Jacksonville, Fla., areas where Coughlin coached the NFL's Giants and Jacksonville Jaguars.

In a 2019 interview with PEOPLE, Coughlin, citing the National Children's Cancer Society, said dealing with childhood cancer costs a family an average of $833,000, taking into account medical costs and lost wages. “Can you imagine how a regular family can handle that?” he said at the time.

With Gigi’s family struggling, the Jay Fund stepped in and covered multiple rent payments. It also gave them a sense of community and let them know they were not alone.

Related: How a Hard-Driving Football Coach Devoted Himself to Families of Childhood Cancer Patients

Everyone involved in the organization has “become total family members,” says Nikki. “In every aspect, they helped defuse and destress.”

Gigi’s prognosis had been improving, but in July 2020, things took a bad turn, and her cancer was deemed incurable. She handled the news like she handled everything else, says her mom: by focusing on the positive and controlling what she could control. Every day, she recited a daily affirmation: “Today will be great because it’s going to be better than yesterday. I manifest so the universe can hear me.”

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She also resolved to plan her own funeral. “She said, ‘If that’s what’s gonna happen, it’s gonna be on my terms,’” says Nikki. “People in the cancer world, they have no control. This gave her control over something.”

As Gigi planned it, wearing black and white would be forbidden at her funeral. Instead, everyone had to wear their favorite colors. The music would be by Bruno Mars. At the bottom of her funeral instructions, she wrote, “Mom, stop freaking out, just do it.”

Related: A Super Bowl-Winning Team Reunites 10 Years Later to Tackle Childhood Cancer

Gigi survived long enough to graduate. The school held a special ceremony for her in the hospital. The entire student body showed up, and her diploma was presented to her by her neurosurgeon. During the school-wide graduation that followed, Nikki, who was six months pregnant at the time, wore a cap and gown and walked in her daughter’s place.

Even in the condition Gigi was in, she thought about others — being compassionate was something she could control. She’d been helped by the Jay Fund and adopted a “pay it forward” mindset, says Nikki. At the time of graduation, she had two friends who couldn’t afford to go to their middle school prom, so she Venmo’d them each $20 from her hospital bed.

She died peacefully soon after at the age of 14, with her favorite Bruno Mars music playing as her family held her. Since then, in Gigi’s memory, Nikki has organized two annual fundraisers at schools in Bayonne, with the money going to students who can’t otherwise afford to participate in 8th grade graduation festivities. Those expenses add up, just like families with a child who has cancer have financial stressors that nobody sees: There are graduation photos, class trips, and dresses or suits for the prom.

Related: Eli Manning Teams with Former Coach Tom Coughlin to Help Families of Children with Cancer

When Gianna missed out on her graduation pictures being taken, the Jay Fund set up a photo shoot. That’s why she wanted to make sure other students don't miss moments.

Gigi’s legacy is a snapshot of her happiest moment. Recounting the day Gigi received her diploma, Nikki says, “We were able to see how happy that made her. I wanted to provide that same happiness to other families in that position.”

“It gives me a sense of peace knowing that her memory is love and helping other people.”

For more information or to learn more about the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation visit tcjayfund.org and follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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