Taliyah Baptiste

Hello Everyone,  
Taliyah Baptiste, 9 year old New Visions Elementary 4th grade student, and her family need our support.
On Tuesday September 4, 2018-1st day of school for all students-Taliyah, excited and energetic as always, walked into NV looking forward to being a 4th grader and joining all her friends.  Unfortunately, her life changed in a matter of minutes.  As she walked into school her mother noticed Taliyah was limping, her speech slurred and her eyes changed.  This led to her being rushed to her pediatrician and then straight to Winthrop Hospital.  That same night, after a series of scans, they found a tumor in Taliyahs brain.  She was diagnosed with a rare pediatric cancer, Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma(DIPG). 
A Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma(DIPG) is a tumor located in the pons(middle) of the brain stem.  The brain stem is the bottom most portion of the brain, connecting the cerebrum with the spinal cord.  The majority of brain stem tumors occur in the pons and are diffusely infiltrating(they grow amidst the nerves), and therefore cannot be surgically removed.  The brain stem contains all of the incoming neurons within the spinal cord, as well as important structures involved in eye movements and in face and throat muscle control and sensation.  Taliyahs health rapidly declined that night.  The following day, the decision was made by doctors that radiation needed to start. Taliyah started radiation on Thursday and had a second radiation treatment on Friday.  The tumor can not be operated on therefore Doctors are working on getting Taliyah into various possible clinical trials.  All of this comes with high medical expenses to the family and help is needed.  
We ask that you please support the Baptiste family. Lisa, Taliyahs mom, is an active PTA parent in Freeport schools and a past PTA President at New Visions.  The family recently moved back into their home after it was substantially damaged due to Hurricane Sandy and were forced to elevate.  This is truly a lot for the family to take on on their own. The need is urgent in order to provide her parents the ability to focus on their child, and not whether or not they can pay for necessary treatment options. 
Lets come together and help them alleviate some of these medical expenses.
We Thank You from the bottom of our hearts.