Starting a nonprofit is a hard thing to do. Starting a nonprofit when you're a recovering leukemia patient is harder. Starting a nonprofit when you're a recovering leukemia patient AND a sophomore in high school -- well, that's another category, the Miami Herald reports.

While Ian Amber was growing up, he would watch other children play as he sat in bed, fighting the side effects of chemotherapy. Boredom and monotony defined his world. But after his leukemia went into remission two years ago, Ian decided -- rather than dwell on lost time -- to help make other kids' stays in hospitals a little more bearable.

With help from his brother, Kyle, who's in fifth grade, Ian started Kids That Care Pediatric and Cancer fund, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Jackson Memorial Foundation. The fund was created to make life for young chemotherapy patients a little better during arduous hospital stays, the Herald reports.

The fund is supported by sticker and bake sales, donations and grants. The money buys such items as video games and computers for children stranded in their rooms during recovery. Ian brings a touch of empathy to the fund, understanding what will help alleviate the discomfort from cramped muscles and painful IV tubes.

For example, children who are recovering from bone marrow transplants are given computers because they must be isolated while their immune systems are healing. Ian's reasoning, according to the Miami Herald report: "With a computer, they can communicate with friends. It is the only contact they have with the outside world."

And he would know.