Cindy Cox
Coaster Correspondent
On May 15 approximately 80 participants left the Milltown Lions Community Center and walked several km in loving memory of Sianne Brushett. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police along with the Milltown Fire Department escorted the group in their walk.
Sianne was born on October 23, 2005 in Ottawa. When she was 15 months old she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hepatoblastoma (a rare form of childhood cancer). The cancer had already begun to spread to her lungs by the time she was diagnosed.
Sianne went through uncountable tests, and two very harsh rounds of chemotherapy. A very brave little girl endured so much in such a short time. After two rounds of chemo the parents were told that her tumour had shrunk by half its size. Things seemed to be going well but the doctors decided that she needed more chemo before they could use surgery to remove the tumor.
Sadly, after the third and fourth round of chemo, things weren't looking so well. The treatments were no longer working and the cancer had spread even further into the lungs. Her parents, Jennifer and Sheldon Brushett were told that there was nothing else they could do, a parent’s worst nightmare. They were told to take Sianne home and make her as comfortable as possible. Sianne then spent about two weeks at home with her family but she was too uncomfortable and had too much pain, so her mom and dad took her back to the Janeway where she could get the pain treatment she needed. A few days later, at the age of 21 months, Sianne lost her battle with cancer. The family has never forgotten the things that the Janeway staff did for her in her last days. Since Sianne has passed away, her mom and dad have had two more children, Brody and Jaxson - two brothers she sadly never got to meet.
“The Janeway staff helped make the hardest months of our lives a little easier. They not only did their jobs but actually cared about Sianne,” said Jackie Organ.
The support from local organizations, businesses and individuals living in the surrounding communities was amazing. Everyone went back to the community center after for a lunch and anyone who took part in the fundraiser received a gift in thanks for their support. There was a cake that also made for the event and Spencer Lushman and Alyssa Organ had the honour of cutting it.
The total raised was $4219.90 and all proceeds will be donated to the Janeway Telethon in June.
“This is their way of thanking the Janeway for everything they did for our family during Sianne’s battle. The doctors and staff not only have a very hard job but truly do care about their patients and families and we experienced that first hand,” said Ms. Organ.
The family would like to thank everyone who participated, donated or contributed in anyway to help make this a very successful event.
A special thank you to Jackie Organ, Kayla Lushman, Linda Walsh and Joan Brushett for organizing the event.
.jpg)
