On November 25, 2025, we lost a genuinely good soul, Vishal Hoffmann-Parikh. Vish lit up any room he entered, was the life of the party, made everyone at ease and welcome in his presence. He loved sharing his passions with others, be it a round of golf, a few games of darts, a run in prospect park, searing some ribeyes to perfection, or his latest Nintendo Switch or Xbox conquest.

The truly amazing thing about Vish is just how many people he impacted for the better in his 38 years. His positivity and genuine care for others was infectious. When Vish was diagnosed, one of the hardest parts for him to come to terms with was knowing he wouldn’t have as much time on this earth as expected. He knew he had so much to offer his family, friends, & community, and had a hard time coming to terms with that being cut short.

Because of this & just because of who Vish was, we spent a lot of time thinking about ways Vish getting sick could be turned into something good for others. There had to be some greater reason he was being put through this battle. That played a part into how transparent we were sharing updates on social media, the fundraising we did Fall 2024 for Stupid Cancer and Gastric Cancer Research, and any way we could help inspire others to live life more fully.

When Vish was in the ICU last October, we spent time talking through his end of life wishes. These were some of the hardest conversations we ever had, but both felt it was incredibly important to do while we could. One piece we didn’t get to fully hash out was what to do in his memory. We knew we wanted to do something, but in all our notes we had a placeholder that simply read “Something Good”.

Knowing what impact Vish could have had, it’s impossible to narrow down to one cause. Instead, we’ve set up this memorial fund that will be distributed to multiple causes, all tied to things Vish was passionate about. In this way, Vish will continue to impact others and be a force for good for years to come.

I'm looking forward to dedicating time to distributing these funds in Vish's name and taking on the mission of doing 'something good'. If you feel strongly about your donation being directed towards a particular one of the causes listed below, please note that in your donation comment. Otherwise, all donations will be aggregated and distributed across the group.

Cancer Community

Stupid Cancer - Adolescent and Young Adults (AYA) aged 15-39 are THE most underserved patient population by age. They deal with so many unique challenges each and every day, many that Vish personally went through. Stupid Cancer is focused on making cancer suck less for this population.

Cancer Hope Network - Vish and I both benefited from connecting with other cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers. I believe Vish would’ve continued to share his story and connect with others going through cancer diagnoses; by donating to Cancer Hope Network, we can support these mentorship connections in his name.

Direct GoFundMe to SRCC Patients - Signet Ring Cell Adenocarcinoma is a rare and aggressive cancer. There are no specific non-profits focused on SRCC, but patients are typically diagnosed at a late stage (Vish was diagnosed at Stage 4) and require intensive courses of treatment that can be cost prohibitive. We will find GoFundMe’s set up specifically for patients with SRCC and donate to support their treatment and quality of life in Vish’s name.

Cancer Research

The Rare Cancer Research Foundation - RCRF is building the ecosystem that will lead to cures for rare cancers. Researchers have limited access to rare cancer samples while patients struggle to find information for the treatments they need. RCRF's indication-agnostic approach allows them to build scale and efficiencies across cancer communities and act as a force multiplier in the search for cures.

Gastric Cancer Foundation - Two of the treatment lines Vish received were cutting edge options targeting an emerging biomarker Vish had, CLDN 18.2, made possible by cancer research. One was an immunotherapy approved by the FDA that Vish was the first patient at NYU to receive, and another was a phase 1 clinical trial first to human drug. Vish was nervous to partake in a phase 1 trial, but believed in participating to help research develop treatments for future patients, even if it risked being not effective for him.

Golf Education

First Tee-Met New York - Vish always saw himself becoming a golf instructor later in life. Donating to First Tee will support a youth development organization that integrates the game of golf with life skills curriculum to build inner strength, self-confidence, and resilience that kids can carry to everything they do.