Friends of cancer patient taking unique approach to fundraising
LYNNWOOD, Wash. - A Snohomish County woman is fighting for her life while struggling to pay for the medical care she desperately needs.
Faced with those sky-high bills, the woman and her friends are now taking a unique approach to fundraising.
Alonna Sofie is a mother of four children, and she's got more on her plate than any one person should have to deal with.
Back in April, Sofie noticed an odd sore on her leg that eventually landed her in the hospital for two months. Five surgeries later, it's healed enough that she can skip her bi-monthly checkups. But her road to recovery is far from over, and she likely wouldn't be here if not for that leg infection.
"The doctor says that infection saved my life," she said.
That's because every antibiotic doctors gave her failed, and eventually bone marrow samples revealed a rare form of leukemia.
"They said I was in such an advanced stage I needed chemotherapy immediately," Sofie said.
Her husband, Josh, didn't want her to go through chemo, but she did. Josh took his own life while she was in the hospital.
Sofie is now trying to raise her children on her own while also fighting for her life.
She's doing it with tremendous help from her parents, siblings and friends.
"I feel blessed," she said.
Sofie now needs a bone marrow transplant, and without insurance, she needs to come up with $200,000 to cover the costs.
Her friends turned to YouCaring.com, which is one of a growing number of websites that allow people to network and pool their resources to raise money online.
"It's amazing. I am actually kind of speechless on it," Sofie said.
Sofie has collected $13,000 online so far, but she has a long way to go before she reaches $200,000.
Her friends and family are now selling wrist bands in her honor. They had a garage sale last week and are planning a Sunday car wash. All of it to pay for the bone marrow transplant she needs. She's also waiting to hear from the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance to see if doctors there will take her as a patient.
Faced with those sky-high bills, the woman and her friends are now taking a unique approach to fundraising.
Alonna Sofie is a mother of four children, and she's got more on her plate than any one person should have to deal with.
Back in April, Sofie noticed an odd sore on her leg that eventually landed her in the hospital for two months. Five surgeries later, it's healed enough that she can skip her bi-monthly checkups. But her road to recovery is far from over, and she likely wouldn't be here if not for that leg infection.
"The doctor says that infection saved my life," she said.
That's because every antibiotic doctors gave her failed, and eventually bone marrow samples revealed a rare form of leukemia.
"They said I was in such an advanced stage I needed chemotherapy immediately," Sofie said.
Her husband, Josh, didn't want her to go through chemo, but she did. Josh took his own life while she was in the hospital.
Sofie is now trying to raise her children on her own while also fighting for her life.
She's doing it with tremendous help from her parents, siblings and friends.
"I feel blessed," she said.
Sofie now needs a bone marrow transplant, and without insurance, she needs to come up with $200,000 to cover the costs.
Her friends turned to YouCaring.com, which is one of a growing number of websites that allow people to network and pool their resources to raise money online.
"It's amazing. I am actually kind of speechless on it," Sofie said.
Sofie has collected $13,000 online so far, but she has a long way to go before she reaches $200,000.
Her friends and family are now selling wrist bands in her honor. They had a garage sale last week and are planning a Sunday car wash. All of it to pay for the bone marrow transplant she needs. She's also waiting to hear from the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance to see if doctors there will take her as a patient.
