A year ago, I took this photograph. It was the evening before Brown Bear day would be celebrated in Kelsey’s Kindergarten classroom. It was a day that she looked forward to for weeks. It was a day that she missed.
The memory of this moment lingers on as she was crippled in pain with red blotches all over her body. Instead of creating memories of literacy and fostering her love of learning, Kelsey required a heavy dose of medication, a biopsy, and emergent medical attention.
As if she someone sensed this timeline, she decided to read Eric Carle’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear as her bedtime tale. She marveled at the fact that her reading has come such a long way in a year.
“I remember not being able to read this story once. I cannot even remember that time,” she stated with pride.
The words of Eleanor Roosevelt ran through my mind as Kelsey read. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” No, Eleanor, they can not.
We celebrate the warmth of our home instead of the sterile hospital lights. We are grateful. We are hopeful. We ask for your help.
We thank you for sharing in our quest for research and a cure.
Please join us on November 24, 2017 for our 2nd annual Gala. Tickets can be purchased here.