HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — The north Alabama community is coming together to help a Madison girl and her family get through a tough time.
Ansley Abigail Smith is six years old and she’s going through much more than an average kindergartner should have to go through. She’s fighting a battle against cancer, stage three rhabdomyosarcoma, a cancer in the muscle tissue.
Ansley came down with what her parents thought was a typical sinus infection at the end of March. Little did they know, their baby girl was very sick. Ansley was admitted to St. Jude’s at the beginning of April. Her treatment includes 60 rounds of chemotherapy and radiation.
Thankfully, she’s been able to continue her education and she even got to walk across the stage for her kindergarten graduation. Though, her parents are trying to maintain a sense of normalcy for her and her sister Lacy, there’s still a long road ahead.
“It’s a full time job for both of them to care for her everything she has going on so someone has to help pay the bills here,” said Jen Detulleo. “I don’t know, I just can’t imagine having that burden.” Detulleo’s daughter is in school with Ansley. When she heard the news, her heart sank.
She’s never met the family, but she felt called to raise money while Ansley undergoes treatment. “It’s a little weird I guess and I’m sure other people think it’s weird but I have talked to the grandmother via Facebook and the mom via email,” she said. “I guess my thought is if this was me and this was my child, I would hope that everyone would help me as much as they could.”
Detulleo reached out to her trainer, Andy McCloy, for help. For a small donation fee, people can come sweat it out at Body Creations Sports Performance and Fitness on Saturday. All of the proceeds will go to the Smith family.
“I’ve got a daughter, when I found out about Ansley’s situation it was something I definitely thought was worthy of getting behind,” said McCloy. “Anytime you hear about a young girl in that situation, it’s pretty powerful thing.”
You can read Ansley’s full story here.
The charity boot camp will be held Saturday, June 7th from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at BCI. That’s located at 9582 Madison Boulevard in Suite 16 and 17. You can register online here. Don’t forget to include a message using Ansley’s name. Sponsors for the event include Barnes Signs, JFD Photography and Design, BCI, Murphy Homes, McCrispin Inc., and Platinum Mortgage.
There is also a fund set up at Redstone Federal Credit Union under Love for Ansley.
Detulleo also owns a photography business, JFD Photography & Design, and will be offering mini sessions on Saturday, June 7th with all proceeds benefiting Ansley’s family. You can contact her at this link for more information.