Hello I’m Cookies Mom Janel and I am starting this fundraiser to help her through her medical and recovery journey.
Before I tell you about the surgeries, MRIs, and medical appointments, I want you to know who Cookie is.
Cookie is the most beautiful soul I have ever known. She has the kindest heart, the deepest compassion for others, and a way of making people feel loved and cared for. She is the person who worries about everyone else, even when she’s the one struggling. She is funny, thoughtful, strong, and the kind of person who always tries to see the good in people.
As her mother, there is nothing I wouldn’t do for her.
Watching her face the challenges of the past two years has been heartbreaking. Through brain surgery, hearing loss, anxiety, medical appointments, and obstacles that would be difficult for anyone (especially someone her age) she has continued to show incredible courage and resilience.
More than anything, I want to give her comfort, support, and peace as we prepare for her second brain surgery. She has already been through so much, and she deserves to feel surrounded by love and care every step of the way.
In October 2024, our world changed when doctors discovered a massive brain tumor about the size of a golf ball. During her first surgery, surgeons were able to remove approximately 75% of the tumor. The goal was to remove as much as possible while protecting important functions, including her hearing.
Despite everyone’s best efforts, Cookie lost hearing in one ear and is now completely deaf on that side.
Since her surgery, she has undergone MRI scans every three months so her medical team could closely monitor the remaining tumor. For every appointment, we travel for her care, I cover transportation, rental car expenses, and all costs that come with ongoing treatment.
We believed we had more time before facing another surgery. We expected it might be a year or two down the road. Instead, her most recent MRI showed enough growth that her doctors are no longer comfortable waiting. They are now recommending a second surgery within the next month or two. I am hoping to push it off till at least November just so that I am fully prepared but at the end of the day it is up to the doctors. So I decided to reach out to community for help.
While the news was unexpected and frightening, there is hope. Once the remaining tumor is successfully removed, doctors expect it will never grow back.
The first surgery was terrifying. We were overwhelmed, scared, and trying to navigate a situation we never imagined we’d face. This time, we have more knowledge and a better understanding of what lies ahead, but it doesn’t make it any less frightening. Learning that this surgery needs to happen so much sooner than expected has been difficult for both of us.
If you know Cookie, you know her for her heart. She is kind, compassionate, funny, and the type of person who worries more about everyone else than herself. Through brain surgery, hearing loss, endless medical appointments, anxiety, and challenges that would overwhelm many adults, she continues to show incredible strength and resilience.
Alongside the physical challenges, Cookie has struggled with anxiety ESPECIALLY health-related anxiety since her diagnosis. She also endured severe bullying after her first surgery. Some students cruelly referred to her as “the cancer girl,” despite the fact that she never had cancer. The emotional impact of those experiences has been just as real as many of the physical challenges she has faced.
For most of this journey, it has been Cookie and me navigating appointments, travel, recovery, and the many challenges that come with a serious medical condition. We have learned to lean on each other and keep moving forward one day at a time.
Funds raised will help cover travel expenses, transportation, medical-related costs, recovery needs, and everyday expenses that arise while preparing for and recovering from surgery. My goal is to make this second surgery and recovery as comfortable and stress-free as possible for Cookie.
If funds remain after her medical and recovery needs are met, they will be used to help provide Cookie with a service dog. Since her diagnosis, hearing loss, and ongoing anxiety, I believe a service dog could provide comfort, support, confidence, and companionship as she continues healing and adjusting to life after surgery.
Asking for help is not easy, but I want to give Cookie every possible opportunity to focus on healing instead of worrying about the financial burden that comes with ongoing medical care.
If you are able to donate, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. No amount is too small, and every contribution makes a difference.
If you would like to support Cookie but are unable or uncomfortable making a direct donation, I have also included links to places where I am selling many of my personal belongings to help cover her medical and travel expenses. Every purchase, share, kind word, and act of support helps us more than you know and brings us one step closer to getting Cookie the care she needs.
If you are unable to donate or make a purchase, sharing Cookie’s story would mean the world to us.
Most of all, please keep Cookie in your thoughts and prayers as she prepares for this next chapter. We are hopeful, scared, grateful, and ready to keep fighting—just as we have from the very beginning.
Thank you for taking the time to read our story, for caring about Cookie, and for helping remind her that she is not facing this journey alone.
With love and gratitude,
Janel & Cookie 🦄
