Rachel: A smile that lights up every room
Two years ago, 7 year-old Rachel started complaining that her head hurt. Her mom thought it was from an accident at school and that she would be fine. When the headache did not subside, Rachel’s mom knew something more was going on with her.
On September 9, 2015, Rachel was diagnosed with an ependymoma. Like so many other children receiving the diagnosis of a brain tumor, Rachel’s long journey included surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.
Last September, Rachel made her runway debut at the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation-Georgia Chapter’s Couture for Kids. This little fighter’s beautiful smile lit up the room at Tootsies and won the hearts of everyone who attended. In her sassy dress and silver shoes, she not only worked the runway but was an amazing assistant behind the scenes helping with accessories and line-up.
Sweet Rachel continued to fight through the good days and the bad. She was declared cancer free and her port was removed at the end of 2016.
Rachel’s love of painting, coloring, and music kept her going during some of the hardest times of her young life, along with her family’s faith in God.
Her mom, Amarilis, says, “There are two important people who tell us important things: God and the doctors. It only matters what they say about our beautiful daughter.”
In June of this year, Rachel complained of back pain. She had taken a tumble at field day, so her mom thought she had just bruised her tailbone. The pain continued, though. After some persistence on the part of her parents, an MRI revealed the first week of July that Rachel had a new tumor on her spine — again an ependymoma.
Over the past couple of months, Rachel has resumed her fight with surgery, radiation, chemo, and rehabilitation.
While going through treatment last month, Rachel gave back to the PBTF and painted this beautiful dress to be auctioned off at this year’s Couture for Kids Atlanta. She painted it in her favorite color and added the words and painted the stars so they shine. Rachel’s mom said she did this not just for her love of art, but for her love of the PBTF.
Today, Rachel is in Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta fighting an infection caused by her new port. She has finished radiation but remains on chemo. This girl and family continue to rely on their faith and each other as they fight every day!
You can join us at Wednesday’s Couture for Kids Atlanta and bid on Rachel’s dress to help her and other children battling brain tumors. Limited tickets are still available at bit.ly/coutureforkidsatlanta2017.
