Leukemia Survivor Helps Future Make-A-Wish Children With OURA

At age 11 Keane Veran was diagnosed with Leukemia. He became a Make-A-Wish kid and traveled to Washington D.C. to meet President Barack Obama. At age 19, Keane was declared a cancer survivor.

The happiness that Make-A-Wish gave Keane in 2011 inspired him to pay it forward and help other children. Through this dream, OURA was born. OURA is inspired by the legend of folding 1,000 paper cranes to make a wish so, for every 1,000 products sold OURA helps grant a wish for a child fighting cancer.

I was able to talk to Keane about his experience with Make-A-Wish and his brand that he created with his brother, Shaun.

How did Make-A-Wish impact your life?

Make-A-Wish changed my life.

In 2011, Make-A-Wish granted my wish to meet President Obama in the Oval Office. While meeting him was an unforgettable experience, I didn’t realize how much that wish experience would impact my recovery as a childhood cancer patient.

Coming back home, I found myself more determined than ever to overcome my battle with Leukemia. I felt so empowered and grateful for the experience Make-A-Wish had created for me.

Because of this, I developed a deep desire to help other childhood cancer patients experience the power of a wish. I immediately started volunteering as an ambassador for the organization and once I became a cancer survivor in 2017, I decided to launch OURA to help grant more wishes for children with Make-A-Wish.

In your own words, what is OURA and how can it impact someone’s life?

At OURA, we use a scientific approach to help people live cleaner, healthier and safer lives. We reimagine the items that you use on a daily basis so they become functional from a molecular level. With the most advanced technologies, we infuse antimicrobial compounds into every thread so these features remain no matter how many times they are washed. With this molecular level infusion process, all of our pieces are designed to last much longer than conventional pieces.

Beyond just making better pieces for your closet, we are hyper-focused on giving back to causes that made an impact in our lives. So, every purchase helps to grant a child’s wish through Make-A-Wish.

Is there anything you think BELLA readers should know about your brand?

We want to affect real, lasting change – whether this is for our customers who use our products or for the children who we are able to grant wishes for. Our goal is to help our customers live healthier lives while creating communities that can dramatically impact the lives of childhood cancer patients.

Beyond that, we want to give back in a way that creates an incredibly powerful impact for a child in need. Every wish that we are able to grant is because of a collective of hundreds of people who come together to change a life.

Experiencing a wish is a life-changing event that leaves wish-recipients feeling more hope, strength and joy. Recognizing the power of a wish, granting wishes is at the heart of everything we do. It is what we are most passionate about and we are proud to support Make-A-Wish, making as many of these wishes come true.

Published November 2020 on BELLA Magazine