NEWS

‘Eli Week’ to help boy battle cancer

By ED KDONIAN
Posted 5/24/23

Three-year-old Eli Urena, from Cranston, was diagnosed with cancer Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia TCELL in December of 2021. After going into remission in January of 2022 his cancer has returned.

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NEWS

‘Eli Week’ to help boy battle cancer

Posted

Three-year-old Eli Urena, from Cranston, was diagnosed with cancer Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia TCELL in December of 2021. After going into remission in January of 2022 his cancer has returned.

On January 23, almost one year to the day of going into remission, Eli’s cancer was found to have returned. The Fawn and Cub Play Space, on Park Avenue in Cranston, has helped to arrange a variety of events, as well as a gofundme, in the hopes of helping Eli and his family obtain the funds necessary to help the young boy get the treatment he needs.

With a fundraising goal of $25,000, the gofundme has already raised over $9,000 towards its goal. Money raised by the campaign will help Eli’s family to cover medical costs, travel costs and anything else they need while they work to give Eli everything he may need to fight back against cancer.

“When Eli comes to our playroom, he leads with his smile and laugh which makes everyone around him do the same,” Fawn and Cub Play Space owner Jennifer LaMountain said in the description of the gofundme she organized.

“It breaks our hearts to think about the journey this sweet, sweet boy and his family have ahead of them. We want to do everything we can to make the road ahead just a little easier. Please consider donating what you can to help Eli and his family.”

Rosemary Urena, Eli’s mother and the recipient of the fundraising, started taking her son to the play place in May of 2021. Since then, she and her son have made many friends at Fawn and Cub who wanted to do all they could to help when they heard that Eli’s cancer had come back.

“It would always be him and his mom coming in, and she’s always been super sweet,” LaMountain said.

“When I first opened it was COVID, so we had to do private play sessions. I always call him my OG customer, because he’s been coming since day one. We’ve gotten really close. It was really heartbreaking to hear when he was diagnosed again with cancer.”

LaMountain said many other moms and volunteers rallied when they heard the news and offered to help.

Tuesday, May 30, marks the beginning of “Eli Week” at the Fawn and Cub Play Space. The entire week will be dedicated to raising awareness and funds through a series of “superhero themed events.” The festivities will kick off with a Woody and Bluey meet and greet from 9:30 to 10 a.m.

The second day of “Eli Week '' takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will bring visits from health care heroes. Caitlin DellaPeruta, a mother and volunteer at Fawn and cub, said that they have teamed up with Alert Urgent Care from North Kingstown who will bring EMTs and an ambulance along with them while providing a story reading. Mayor Ken Hopkins will make an appearance at 11 a.m., and treats from Boba Lova, a bubble tea and mochi donut shop on Park Avenue, will be on hand.

Thursday, June 1, will bring a pizza party and superhero mask decorating fun starting at 11:30 a.m. and going until supplies last.

“So we have an ambulance coming and they’ll be doing safety kits with the kids that like collects their fingerprints to put them on record, and then we have the mayor coming in for a visit,” LaMountain said.

“Then Thursday is super hero day where we’re gonna have free pizza for the kids and then I have a couple of different superhero crafts for the kiddos.”

A blood drive will take place on Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with Spiderman making an appearance at 1:30 to entertain kids.

Saturday will bring the festivities to a close with a touch-a-truck event in the morning from 9:30 to 10 a.m. and a raffle drawing at noon featuring prizes from more than 20 businesses across the state.

Those wishing to give Eli a helping hand in his fight against cancer can scan the qr code below this story or go to gofundme.com/f/help-our-hero-eli-crush-cancer.

Eli, cancer, battle

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