Hope, Strength, and Healing for families coping with a child cancer diagnosis

Meet Keaton’s Kiddo Bethany

Meet 10-year-old Keaton’s kiddo Bethany. Bethany is an artistic and creative soul that finds joy in painting, clay sculpting, music, sports, and singing.

In May of 2018 at the very young age of 6, Bethany’s mom felt an abnormality when showing her affection through a hug, leading to an unfortunate diagnosis of Wilms’ Tumor, a cancer of the kidneys. As a very brave first-grader, she underwent surgery to have the tumor removed and completed treatment, ultimately leaving no cancer to be detected. While already having gone through the trenches, oncologists found that the cancer had spread to her lungs in 2020, leading her to complete more treatment to no longer find any detected cancer. Being the warrior she is, Bethany continued with school and is advancing in her creative and athletic passions. Now a fifth-grader, Bethany sadly heard the devastating news that she has relapsed for the second time, making this her third courageous battle against cancer.

Despite having gone through such a long journey, Bethany remains a positive kiddo that gains courage through the love and support of her community, classmates, and now Keaton’s Child Cancer Alliance, since March of 2022. Recognizing the remarkable warrior she is, Keaton’s has had the honor of coming alongside the battle with Bethany during her third fight. The Family Navigator team provided a financial grant to support her family in easing some of the financial stress of medication costs, hospital bills, and co-payments, while also seeking out supportive resources. Aside from continuous check-in calls with her family, the team personalized a joyous Hope Chest for Bethany, full of art sets, games, sports items, and a very cozy snuggle blanket. Her 3 loving, older siblings also received their own Hope Chests full of crafts and fun family games, which are all a family favorite! Our team at Keaton’s hopes to continue to bring other families the same feeling of support and joy that Bethany and her family have expressed with our Family Navigator team.

“Thank you Isela for the wonderful package we received recently. It was filled with so much love and joy, fun adventurous gifts and it brought us lots of smiles and hope. We thank you for your kindness and thoughtfulness, support and generosity. The financial support we received will help us in many ways. We are very blessed and filled overflowing with joy. Thank you Keaton’s Cancer Alliance for your mission. May God bless you and all your great works in helping others.” -Bethany and Family

Meet Keaton’s Kiddo – Kodiak

In the Fall of 2023, Keaton’s Kiddo Kodiak was diagnosed with two rare and aggressive forms of cancer: Mixed Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) also known as ‘preleukemia.’

Their journey began one year earlier, in the Fall of 2022, when Kodiak was struck with a series of different seasonal illnesses. Kodiak’s mom Tonya shares: “In September, he got COVID, and then in November it was the flu, and then December RSV.”

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Meet Keaton’s Kiddo – Ellora

Months before a clear diagnosis, Ellora was experiencing a loss of appetite, night sweats, and oversleeping. For Ellora, these symptoms were seen as normal for her or seen as natural changes in the growth of a 2-year-old. Eventually, she developed little spots on her hands and unexplained bruises on her body, which the doctors deemed Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), but after seeing an informative TikTok video on the symptoms Ellora was experiencing, her mom’s gut told her it was something more than a bleeding disorder.

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Meet Keaton’s Kiddo – Samerah

14-year-old Samerah, best known as Sam has been battling quite the challenging journey, but with the love and support of her family, friends, and community she has been able to overcome so much. At the very young age of 2 months old, Sam was diagnosed with Neurofibromatosis. Neurofibromatosis is not an isolated disorder. It causes several different conditions and can lead to the development of tumors on the brain, spine, and the nerves that send signals between the brain and spinal cord.

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