August update : This past week Gabriel started back to school, and what we thought was just a cold unexpectedly turned into news we never wanted to hear — his leukemia has returned. We are devastated. Gabriel had been in remission for almost a year, and while doctors are confident we caught it early again, the fact that it relapsed means he will now need a bone marrow transplant.

For now, Gabriel has started IV chemotherapy treatments and will be in the hospital for at least the next four weeks. We are still learning what the transplant process will look like, but know it will be a long road ahead.

Our immediate needs are similar to last time: help with meals and with Amber and Jimmy’s dogs. The support we received before was overwhelming, and we are so grateful for every single act of kindness. This time, things will be even more difficult financially, as Amber and Jimmy will have to use FMLA during the transplant process to limit exposure — which will mean unpaid time away from work.

We’ll be opening up a calendar again soon to sign up for meals and dog care. If you feel led to help in that way, it would mean the world. If not, please know that keeping Gabriel and our family in your thoughts and prayers is more valuable than we can ever express.

We’re also in the process of setting up a benefit to help with Gabriel’s medical bills, and will share details as soon as everything is in place.

Thank you for standing with us once again. Your support truly carries us through.

My spunky, energetic, little ninja warrior nephew Gabriel was recently diagnosed with leukemia. As you can imagine this has completely taken our entire family by surprise. My sister and brother in law live in Chapel Hill, with the closest family being 2+ hours away from them. This makes this situation even harder for them as Gabriel will be at home for some time while he is receiving his treatments. Life is going to look very different for all of them moving forward which comes with a lot of unknowns, as Jimmy and Amber both have full time jobs. We are extremely grateful for the amazing oncology team he has at UNC Chapel Hill Children’s Hospital. If you feel led in your heart to help them every little bit counts. We appreciate all the love and support from family and friends, but most importantly all the outpouring prayers for our little dude. We have full faith that this too shall pass and soon will be a thing of our past and Gabriel will be back to competing in his Ninja competitions!