Support Emma's Fight Against Hodgkin's Lymphoma

At the beginning of August 2024 my beautiful stepdaughter, the oldest daughter of Alana and Shaun Thomson, was diagnosed with Stage 2 Complicated Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Obviously this was a huge shock to us all, especially considering that Emma had not exhibited any symptoms of illness-- until a lymph node in her neck became so swollen that it was significantly impacting her jugular vein and trachea, leading to a week long in-patient hospital stay.

Emma has always been a sun-seeker, and last year she made a bold decision to move to Miami (rest assured that this has not impacted her love of the Buffalo Bills!) It was incredible to watch this determined young woman find some girls online to become roommates, land an amazing job in IT sales and start writing her own story. For the past several months, Emma has been building an incredible life and future. We all are so proud of her and her accomplishments!

However, all of this has come to a screeching halt due to this diagnosis. She has had to leave Miami, her lease, job, boyfriend and friends to return back to Orchard Park for at least 6 months of aggressive chemotherapy and treatment at Roswell Park.

As her family, we have all come together and are working very hard to make sure that her medical bills are covered, but there are SO many more unanticipated expenses that go along with her care and well being. These include travel, living expenses (as she literally had to leave Miami and her life there with about a week's notice), and supporting her physical, mental and emotional wellbeing while this gorgeous, vibrant 20 year old girl spends her time fighting this horrible disease.

In times like this, when there is so much chaos and turmoil, it can be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel, or find any good in a terrible situation. But we are all learning from Emma... Because she has already dedicated herself to learning as much as she can about this disease and she is committed to trying to help others suffering from the same condition. Her spirit, outlook and maturity in this is unbelievably admirable, and is well beyond her years.

While her prognosis is good, getting her back to normal after this heroic fight will also be costly. She is not sure how long she will be able to work and the future is unknown in terms of how long it will take for her to return to any semblance of normalcy. Even when things hopefully return to normal, she will be required to travel back to Roswell regularly for follow up. Additional future expenses related to her treatment are expected.

We have been so appreciative of the thoughts, prayers and love of those close to us and to Emma, and we hope that we can use this platform to help support her needs during this difficult time. We will continue to provide updates on Emma's progress as she moves through her treatment. Thank you so much.