Jumpers for Jace - Basketball Tournament

Jace’s Journey

It all started a few months before Jace’s 2nd birthday when he fell and bumped his forehead while chasing his brother. After a visit to his doctor and looking at his X-rays, his mom was told there was no concussion, and that he would just have a bruise and a bump on his head. Later that evening, when they returned home from the doctor’s visit, Jade (Jace’s mom) got a call from the doctor and wanted her to return the next day. This is when Jade and Juvonte’ got the news that the X-ray showed a small tumor the size of ping pong ball at the rear of Jace’s head at his hairline. They scheduled further testing and discovered it was cancerous and needed removal.

This was the beginning of Jace’s journey. In 2015, at the age of 2, the tumor was removed, and Jace received his first treatment of chemotherapy and radiation. It took a toll on him, but after about four months, Jace resumed his normal routines. After a great comeback at the age of 3, Jace took on his love of basketball. Jace was a ball of energy and mastered his skill and played an important role as a point guard for the War Eagles until the tumor returned again in 2019. During the midst of the Pandemic, Jace went through another round of chemo, radiation, steroids, and losing his hair, but he was able to return to school and the War Eagles. However, months after the second treatment, Jace noticed weakness in his legs while playing basketball. It progressively got worst and lead to his inability to walk. His speech was also affected, and he was also left without full use of his arms and hands. This lead him to withdraw from his school and continue his regular visits to St. Jude. He is loved so much by his family and friends and has a great support system. This smart, energetic, happy, and comical little boy is now wheelchair bound and gets 24/7 care from his mother who had to stop working to take care of him. Let’s keep Jace and his family in your prayers.