My name is Kayli Sprugasci, and I’m fundraising on behalf of my 12-year-old niece, Avalee.

On Monday, November 10th, Ava was admitted to the hospital in Seattle after suffering a stroke caused by a condition called focal cerebral arteriopathy (FCA).

This nightmare began late Friday night, November 7th, during her church youth group lock-in. I received a call saying Ava had a seizure and was being rushed by ambulance to Central Washington Hospital. When she arrived, she was unresponsive. After a series of tests and scans that showed no clear answers, we were sent home around 4am.

The next two days, Ava slept almost nonstop. She barely ate and could hardly stay awake. She told us she planned to go to school Monday, but when morning came, she still felt awful and slept again. Later that day, when she finally got up, her right side suddenly wasn’t working.

My brother immediately took her back to the ER. Doctors believed she had a blood clot in her carotid artery. She was treated for that and then airlifted to Harborview, where we were told she might need a very risky surgery. After Harborview ran their own imaging, they told us the truth we weren’t prepared for: it wasn’t a clot — Ava had suffered a stroke, and her carotid artery had completely closed.

From there, she was transferred to Seattle Children’s Hospital, where she’s currently being cared for. She has had no movement on her right side and has been unable to speak. Her brain was swelling during those first nights, but thankfully things have stabilized. We are incredibly grateful for the amazing doctors and nurses who are doing everything they can for her.

This will be a long and challenging road. My brother has not been able to return to work and will be staying by Ava’s side throughout her recovery. I’m starting this GoFundMe so that anyone who wants to support Ava and help with her growing medical expenses has a place to do so. We honestly don’t know what the total cost will be — right now, our only focus is helping our sweet Ava heal and come back to us.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for every prayer, message, share, and donation. Your support means more than you know during this incredibly difficult time.