GRAFTON - One local little girl and her family are hoping to kick cancer.
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On Aug. 6, 2016, a benefit for Kailey Almeter will be held at the Loading Dock, located at 401 Front St. in Grafton. Tickets for the event are $30 and include food, beer, specialty drinks, live music from the band Tanglefoot and a photo booth. Almeter's aunt, Jen Almeter said the event will also feature a kids' corner with a magician, crafts and balloon artist as well as both live and silent auctions and several raffles. The money raised will go to benefit the Kailey Almeter Cancer Fund.
Kailey Almeter of Godfrey was diagnosed with high-grade glioma on May 5, 2016, after being taken to the hospital for an MRI. She was having vision problems and was seeing a specialist regarding those issues. The specialist recommended she receive an MRI to find the cause of those issues. She had a seizure while speaking with a nurse prior to that scan, Jen Almeter said. That MRI found a tumor the size of a tennis ball.
Emergency surgery was then done, which removed as much as 50 percent of the tumor. During a subsequent checkup and MRI scan on June 14, 2016, showed the tumor had returned. Kailey Almeter is now on a regimen of chemotherapy.
"Since finding the tumor had returned, she has been going through chemo treatments," Jen Almeter said. "We're hoping it will keep the tumor at bay and continue to shrink it. We will continue to do other therapies as well."
Currently, Kailey Almeter, whose third birthday is July 28, is undergoing weekly chemo treatments. She is able to be at home with her mother, Amber Almeter during her struggle. Jen Almeter said her sister-in-law was forced to leave her full-time job in order to tend to Kailey Almeter's needs. Her father, Joe Almeter, has also taken a cut to his hours. The couple had moved into a new home in Godfrey five months months previous to their daughter's diagnosis. This benefit is to assist them with the financial hardships Kailey Almeter's illness has caused. Luckily, the couple does have health insurance. Kailey also has a four-month old brother named Reid.
Kailey Almeter's future will undoubtedly involve at least one more brain surgery to attack the tumor, and possibly even more than that. Jen Almeter said she may also face radiation treatment. Kailey Almeter's chemotherapy has already caused her some swelling and hair loss as she does her best to live her life has a normal toddler.
More information on the event can be found by calling Jen Almeter at (618) 917-9200 or Adam Bennet at (618) 610-3552.
Anyone interested in donating a basket or gift certificate to the benefit is invited to contact Tina Bennet at (618) 972-3156, Julie Glisson at (618) 806-3639, Cheri Gineris at (618) 708-8119 or P.J. Bennet at (618) 972-3017.
Anyone interested in being a benefit sponsor is invited to contact Travis Widman at (618) 779-3023, Gabe Delehanty at (618) 406-4487 or Travis Tarrant at (618) 974-9259.
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