Mentorship group brings early Christmas to girl recovering from brain surgery
By Shannon Delcambre
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HOMEWOOD, Alabama (WVTM) — A Homewood mentorship group hosted an event to bring an early Christmas celebration to 9-year-old Zoey Jones and her family as she recovers from brain surgery.
Zoey underwent surgery in August to address limited blood flow to her brain caused by complications from sickle cell anemia.
She was diagnosed with the most severe form of the condition at just three months old, and her life has since revolved around hospital visits, blood transfusions, and efforts to make her childhood as normal as possible.
The founder of the Rich Girl Mentorship Program, Richeryl Hill, said she first came across the family’s online effort to raise funds when Zoey had surgery.
“So today’s event is super special. I came up with the idea of Christmas (coming) early. Although we can’t necessarily take away the pain, we can bring some joy. So I wanted to make sure that we provided gifts for everybody in the family, including Zoey, and bless(ed) them with a monetary gift,” Hill said.
The Rich Girl Mentorship Program, which supports girls ages 10 to 18, worked to raise money to help make Zoey’s recovery easier and bring joy to her family during this challenging time.
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