Hi to everyone! My name is Eria, and I'm 11 years old,
My leukemia showed up just before my 7th birthday, during the first week of school. I had AML (the "bad" kind),
so I had to stay in the hospital for months. You could always find my window from the parking lot: we decorated
for every holiday! With AML, a bone marrow transplant is usually recommended if a donor is available. Luckily,
my borther was a match, and my tansplant was just before Valentine's Day. February 9th, the kick off day for the Hike
For Discovery, will be the excat 5 year anniversary.
My mom asked me what the hardest part was during that time. I don't teally like to talk about it, but being away
from friends and my house, away form my pets for so long in the same small room made me rally sad. Sometimes my dad
couldn't even visit me because he had a cold. From September to March I got to come home only twice, between courses
of chemotherapy, and after that I had to stay in quarantine at home until September again. (but my mom and I would sneak
out every 10 days to get and ice cream cone at Uncle Wiggly's).
Aside from the ice cream, something that kept me going during that year was receiving all the letters and good wishes
from my classmates, friends and family. They even organized a chamber music concert in my honor! And the nurses
at the clinic probably will never forget the pair of purple Wheelies (skate shoes) that I got from the firefighters at the
Christmas party they sponsored at the hospital. I wore them every time I came back for treatment at the clinic.
Now I am in 5th grade at a new charter school, the Baltimore International Academy. I love to play trombone and
soccer, to write, to play with my 9 pets, to dance or play DDR, to listen to music, to read, to speak different languages,
to fantasize, to skate, to draw, to ride bikes and my Ripstick, to sew teaddy bears...("I have, like, 500 million different
interests").
From my mom:
We know what you all are very busy, too, and that taking part in this Hike For Discovery is a huge commitment of
time and effort. Your dedication and selflessness is making a tremendous difference for all of those who are affected
by leukemia and lymphoma. So many advances have been made in reasearch supported by funds raised by the public and the
L & L Society. Eria is just one of the success stories, for which we are eternally grateful. We wish you lots
of fun and much success in the endeavor, an we thank you on behalf of our entire family.
Eria Goodweaver, Dana Goode, Steve Weaver and Brooks Goodweaver
