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

Meet Avarie diagnosed with Acute Pre B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia

13 year old Avarie, who also likes to go by “Stinks,” is a spirited young man with a fun personality and a big heart. Like many boys his age, Avarie enjoys basketball and football, especially the 49ers. He also enjoys spending time with his siblings and older cousin.

In March of 2018, Avarie and his family sadly learned that he had been diagnosed with Acute Pre B-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Despite this devastating news, Avarie has continued to stay optimistic and is even thinking of ways he can help other children and their families going through a similar experience. Avarie created his own t-shirt brand that he calls Worst Effective. The inspiration behind the brand name comes from his personal experience. Avarie feels he has taken a very negative situation and has turned it into something that can have a positive impact on other children and their families.

Two of our Family Navigators had the pleasure of meeting Avarie and his family while delivering our signature ‘Hope Chest’ to them at the hospital. It was immediately clear to our Family Navigators how strong and resilient Avarie and his family are. Although his circumstances are incredibly difficult, ‘Stinks’ remains positive and optimistic while keeping his humor and amazing personality.

 

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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Meet Keaton’s Kiddo – Pedro

Strong and optimistic Keaton’s Kiddo Pedro has a heart for soccer and music, and he absolutely loves Chick-Fil-A! Being a teen at just 14 years old, Pedro was sadly diagnosed with a brain tumor called Juvenile Pilocytic Astrocytoma. Hear about Pedro’s journey from his point of view.

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