Cynwyd Elementary School recently hosted the annual "Cal's Cupcake Challenge" benefiting The Calliope Joy Foundation and the Leukodystrophy Center of Excellence at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. More than 700 community members came out to support this year’s event where 4,000+ cupcakes were sold, ultimately raising more than $13,000 in honor of former Cynwyd student, Calliope Joy Carr, and to support ongoing research and advocacy for children with metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD).

This year's fun-filled affair featured arts & crafts, a children's cupcake baking competition, face painting, moon bounces, obstacle courses prizes, delicious food and thousands of cupcakes donated from the local bakeries.

Calliope Joy Carr, better known as Cal, was the youngest child of Cynwyd parents Pat Carr and Maria Kefalas. In 2012, at the age of two, Cal was diagnosed with late-infantile onset MLD. Leukodystrophies are a group of disorders that affect the white matter of the brain. Children with leukodystrophies are born healthy but begin to regress, losing the ability to crawl, walk, speak, eat, smile and laugh. Although leukodystrophies do not currently have cures, if detected in the newborn period, a stem cell transplant may be a therapeutic option for some patients. Early detection also allows for preventative care strategies to improve quality of life for children and their families. There are more than 60 forms of the disease and 1 in 5,000 are affected.

In 2013, Cal's brother came up with the idea to sell cupcakes to raise money and help the doctors find a cure for "Cal's disease." Since then, The Calliope Joy Foundation has sold tens of thousands of cupcakes and raised upwards of a million dollars through Cal's Cupcake Challenge, The Cupcake 5k and The Cupcake Gala. For more information about The Calliope Joy Foundation and to make a donation, click here.

To see a video created by the Chan Zuckerburg Initiative featuring Cal and The Calliope Joy Foundation's work for a cure, click here. To view photos from this year's event, click