Jada is bright like the sun. Her energy and laugh make everyone feel happy! She is so kind and caring. She loves all things purple, baby animals, and making funny jokes. She loves to dance and sing. Mermaids, rainbows, and unicorns, and flowers are her favorites.
Jada was diagnosed with Leukemia on January 17, 2020. She had run her elementary school fundraiser and came home with huge bruises all over her body, petechiae, and a hard distended stomach. We took her into the ER and she was diagnosed later that night.
Jada is a fighter. Starting immunotherapy, finishing up a treatment protocol, going to the clinic, school, speech therapy, and what feels like a million other things are overwhelming. Jada has felt sick, had emotional ups and downs, trouble sleeping, body aches, verge of fever, headaches, and chemo tastebuds.
Mariana enjoys fun, beaches, family, and friends. While her diagnosis set her back to further develop skills in sports, she loves playing volleyball and basketball. She also has a strong creative mindset. Artistic in her own ways.
Mariana was diagnosed on 5/10/18. After a very long journey, she will be finishing treatment on 9/10/20. She also just started high school. Leading up to her diagnosis, Mariana had lost a lot of weight although she was constantly snacking and eating. Then she noticed a lump under her chin. She plays sports and started getting easily hurt and started limping. We took her to a chiropractor for help. We eventually embarked to find a new pediatrician who started a series of exams and tests. A simple blood test sent us to the emergency room at Comer’s children’s hospital.
Mariana has had intense chemotherapy, endless lumbar punctures, and a port placement surgery. During frontline treatment, Mariana started to experience some potentially serious reactions to 2 IV chemo treatments. Doctors made the decision to skip that drug. We struggled to keep her spirits up while managing severe nausea and exhaustion. Mariana felt she was missing out on life when she was feeling sick or hospitalized. We also noticed some learning challenges.
This journey has strengthened our family. I have also seen this experience transform Mariana into a stronger individual! She was once very shy but treatment has forced her to speak up with doctors and nurses. She now speaks for herself. As a family, we have learned to appreciate everything from the support we have received from organizations to our community, school, friends, family, and each other.
While Mariana will continue to experience certain struggles, she is determined to pursue a career in childhood cancer. Her aspirations range from pediatric oncologist to nurse or child life specialist.
Donald is shy but he has dreams to be an actor one day. He likes to make videos, especially ones where his dad dresses up as Batman and makes him laugh. Donald loves jokes and acting silly. He loves video games and he’s quite good! He also loves art and playing outside.
Donald was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia when we were stationed in Germany. Dad is active-duty military personnel. We had to travel on an emergency evacuation flight to America to start treatment. I (Mom) knew for months that Donald was sick. I just couldn’t figure out what kind of sick. I took him to the doctor nearly weekly for two months until it was finally uncovered with a complete blood count. During those months he had fevers, he was lethargic, he had bone pain, and in the end, his appetite started fading.
After treatment started, Donald was unable to walk for over a month – he is fully mobile now but he is frequently isolated at home because his immune system is severely suppressed currently. Our family is frequently separated for hospital visits and clinic days. Our daughter Claire is 21 months old. She became the most patient and independent baby through this all. She has spent so many days away from mommy, and that was never the plan. She’s always grateful for our family to be back together—we all are! Our family has learned how to live with these changes. It’s certainly not easy, but we’re taking it with stride.
Our family has hit so many hurdles during the past 9 months. First, we had to leave behind everything in Germany and only carried a couple of suitcases with us. We lived in hotels for two months while Donald got stable in Maryland. Then we got official orders to Charleston and we lived in hotels another two months while we closed on a home. All the while, Donald has had extra unexpected hospitalizations, one in the ICU, extra surgeries for kidney stones, and a month where he was completely immobile. He had to learn to walk again and that was one of our hardest times. Looking back, it seems unreal the number of struggles we’ve been through but every day we have kept our focus on faith and taking it one day at a time. We celebrate every day we are given and we are so thankful that our fighter is here today!
During these months that we’ve spent at home, we created a YouTube channel at Donald’s request. We upload family videos and he loves coming up with the ideas. He considers himself a YouTube Star and we agree!
Malachi is funny, smart, and kind. He’s very active and likes to climb on everything. He has a great sense of humor. He loves legos and can spend hours every day creating new masterpieces. He also loves reptiles, rocks, and precious gems. He loves treasure boxes, and anything small and “special”.
Malachi was diagnosed with ALL on December 9th of 2019. He kept getting sick. He had contracted strep throat, ear infections, and Bell’s palsy within a year. One week when I thought he had the flu, I became suspicious because his symptoms were atypical. He wasn’t eating but was bloated. He only threw up in the mornings, and then acted normal. I took him to his regular doctor to get more tests done, and that day, we were rushed to the emergency room at our local Children’s Hospital where he was diagnosed with Leukemia.
Malachi has been through intensive chemotherapy treatment as well as cranial radiation. He has low immunity and so he can’t be around people, a lot of the time. He can’t play in the dirt, wear flip flops, or engage in activities where he can get hurt. This was a huge adjustment from our active, wild 6-year-old boy, to where we are now.
Cancer has isolated our family. The other side is that we have had a lot of family time, and have made some really special memories. We are a lot more cautious than we used to be. We’ve had to change many goals and dreams for the future, as well as current changes. We had to change schools, so we could better navigate through his treatment. We had dreams to foster other children, which won’t be possible through the next three years of treatment. We are still trying to create a new normal and make new dreams.
Sophia was a happy healthy girl. We noticed increased bruising and bloody noses which led us to a visit with her PCP. After a CBC she was found to have low platelets and anemia. The next day we were sent to our local children’s hospital and she was diagnosed that day.
She is so brave. During these past 5 months of treatment, she had never complained. She wakes up happy and ready to play every day. Her strength is admirable.
Ella Joy is bright, creative, friendly, and silly jokes that make her laugh. She loves squishies, lego friends, and smencials (pencils that smell good).
Ella was first diagnosed in 2013 with stage 4 Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma cancer. She went through 2 1/2 years of chemotherapy. Unfortunately, she relapsed in 2017 on St.Patricks day with t-cell leukemia. We took an emergency flight to Seattle Children’s Hospital where she underwent high dose chemotherapy, total body irradiation, cranial radiation, and a bone marrow transplant with her baby brother as her donor! Today, she is at high risk with underlying conditions and we are trying to keep safe from coronavirus.
Ella Joy is a fighter and she never complained once when she battled cancer and even when her hair fell out twice! She took every poke, every chemotherapy, and every pill without ever refusing.
Ella Joy’s cancer diagnosis has absolutely changed our family life. We never take anything for granted, health, friends, family, our faith in God. Her surviving 2 cancer diagnosis is a miracle!
