On Aug. 5, 2011, doctors told Justin Wilford, a UCLA geography lecturer, what no parent wants to hear­­­. His 4-year-old son, Max, had brain cancer.

About two months later, Wilford and his wife, Audra Wilford, founded the MaxLove Project, a nonprofit organization that helps children fighting cancer and other life-threatening conditions.

The idea for the project came during Max’s chemotherapy, when he started using Twilight Turtle pillows, which are sleep aids that also substitute as night lights, Wilford said. Max would sleep with the particular pillows to help heal and cope with the effects of the treatment. Max, now 7 years old, is still fighting cancer.

After partnering up with the twilight pillow manufacturing company, Cloud b, the Wilfords began sending out the pillows to children who have completed or are going through treatment for cancer.

So far, the MaxLove Project has donated roughly $100,000 worth of pillows. The project has also sent out more than 150 nutritional kits filled with educational materials and other products, as well as funded research about integrative medicine, Wilford said. The project is funded by donations from Bruins Fighting Pediatric Cancer and other donors.

Compiled by Christopher Hurley, Bruin reporter.