Our fundraising efforts are being held in honor of Lila. Here is her story.

“How quickly our lives can change. One week, Lila was at school playing with her friends and getting ready for Thanksgiving holidays at her home in West Point Mississippi. The next, she was in Minnesota at the Mayo Clinic receiving her first round of chemo. Lila was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia on November 13, 2017.

Lila is 9 years old. She is in the third grade and loves her teachers and classmates. Lila loves riding her bike, taking dance lessons and swimming in the summer. She also loves animals of all kinds.

Lila is a spirited, fiercely loving, happy child. She is the child who notices when a friend feels left out. She’s the student who forgoes the prize box so someone else can enjoy. She’s the daughter who writes her mom love letters. She lives her life showing kindness to all around her. Likewise, Lila’s mother Heather is a generous, courageous person. She is a champion for the vulnerable and a cheerleader for the underdog.

The first 6 months of Lila's treatment plan will have to take place 13 hours away from home at the Mayo Clinic. Lila’s plan includes 5 rounds of chemotherapy. In between chemotherapy, Lila keeps up with her schoolwork with a tutor. She does physical therapy, experiments with artwork, and she has explored musical instruments. Lila loves when she is able to have a visit from a therapy dog as she misses her pet Boston Terrier back home.

Lila has an aggressive type of Leukemia but her motto is “Be Brave Lila.” She is being brave and showing all the people who love her how it is done. Lila misses all of her friends, her brother, Miller, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins and her dad. She really wants to go home but she is a fighter and she is fighting hard to get well again, all the while keeping a beautiful smile on her face and inspiring everyone around her.”