Wood Dale fundraiser to aid boy fighting leukemia

Michelle Garry and her sister, Angela Prazza, understand all too well the heartache and anxiety happening within the family of Brookfield 6-year-old Benjamin Gonzalez.

Garry's daughter, Jacquelyn, 9, and Benjamin have gone to leukemia treatments together at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood since they each were diagnosed around the same time in 2005, when Benjamin was just 18 months old.

Life was looking up for both children in spring 2009, when doctors declared Jacquelyn in remission and Benjamin's cancer also seemed under control.

"Their family had just finished a Make-a-Wish (Foundation) trip and it seemed like things were finally smooth sailing," Garry said. "But then (Benjamin's mother) Elisa called and said his blood counts were a little off."

Benjamin's leukemia had returned with a vengeance, spreading into his brain and claiming his eyesight, Garry said. It also traveled into his bone marrow and the boy underwent a bone-marrow transplant last week, she added.

"This poor kid has been through so much," Garry said.

And that is why Garry and her sister worked all of their connections in Wood Dale - where Garry owned a real estate business for years before recently moving to Medinah - to create a fundraiser for Benjamin's family scheduled for Sunday, July 11.

As Benjamin's treatments continue, his mother was forced to quit her job, Garry said. And medical bills are mounting.

"I'm just hoping and praying I can raise some money for them," Garry said. "Things are just getting tighter and tighter, and the last thing you want to worry about when you're worrying about your children is financials."

The sisters found friends to design fliers for the event; they convinced friends at Crossroads Eatery in Wood Dale to host the fundraiser; and they even recruited two local groups, The Steepwater Band and Plain Ole Delicious, to add entertainment.

With tickets set at $10, proceeds will directly aid the costs of Benjamin's medical treatments and the Gonzalez family's expenses as they adjust to his mother's job loss.

Prazza said they hope the fundraiser is a success and provides relief for a child who has known nothing but hospitals throughout his short life.

"All the children who go through it are amazing and you can't believe how resilient they are," she said through tears. "It's like we have to do this. And we have to it again if we need to."