Support Danielle's Fight Against Rare Cancer

My name is Katie Frain, Danielle Pratt’s loveable, annoying little sister. As much as my sister (and RJ) hate asking for help and support – those of us who know her best know when we need to pull the village together to wrap them in support and love. This is one of those times.

As many of you know, the Pratt family's story has had everything that makes a great story—peaks of young love, the excitement of marriage, moving across the country and back again, bringing home two of the most beautiful babies—along with the valleys of loss, hardship, and one of life’s ultimate plot twists: cancer.

But if you know Danielle and RJ, you know their love story is just that—a story. It began, fittingly, on stage. They met during a production of Our Town, where Thornton Wilder’s words about love, family, and the fleeting beauty of life were more than just lines in a script; they were the foundation of something real. “Only it seems to me that once in your life before you die you ought to see a country where they don't talk in English and don't even want to,” Emily Webb says in the play, yearning for the vastness of life’s possibilities. In many ways, that spirit of adventure and love has shaped Danielle and RJ’s journey together.

That journey took an unexpected turn when Danielle was pregnant with Rosie. Her care team discovered a large, rapidly growing mass on her right ovary, leading to major abdominal surgery at 20 weeks pregnant (AVA LIIIIIVES! iykyk). It was then they learned the mass was an extremely rare form of ovarian cancer—Sertoli-Leydig cell tumor—affecting only about 40 people in the U.S. each year.

Since mid-June, Danielle has been out of work intermittently, recovering from multiple abdominal surgeries, maternity leave, and, most recently, beginning an intense chemotherapy regimen that will continue through March. Because of the severity of treatment and her role as a Nurse Practitioner—where she would be in constant contact with the general (and often sick) public—she won’t be able to return to work until treatment is complete.

Through all of this, one thing has remained steadfast: love. The love of their family, the love of their community, and the love that began on a stage all those years ago. “We all know that something is eternal. And it ain’t houses and it ain’t names, and it ain’t earth, and it ain’t even the stars…everybody knows in their bones that something is eternal, and that something has to do with human beings.”

That “something eternal” has already shown up in so many ways—from donated breastmilk for baby Rosie to meals, childcare, and an endless supply of prayers. You, their own little version of Grover’s Corners, have already lifted them up. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.

How You Can Help:

We’ve created this GoFundMe to rally support from Our Town—the friends, family, and kind-hearted individuals who want to surround Danielle, RJ, Isaac, and Rosie with love as they navigate this journey. Your contributions will directly support:

• Medical bills (surgeries, hospital stays, ambulance rides)

• Day-to-day living expenses

If you are able, please consider donating, sharing, and keeping this incredible family in your thoughts. Life is precious, and if Our Town has taught us anything, it’s that even in the hardest moments, love remains.