Team ZacharyStrong

Hi all!

This is Laura Hill and Pam Nord aka Auntie Lala and Auntie Pam (Joe and Nikki's sisters). We are sharing this story about our nephew Zachary Sonnek, with permission from his parents. We are starting this GoFundMe to raise money for Zachary's medical bills and travel/lodging costs for medical care while they are in Boston for this current trip and any future check-ins that they are required to have.

For those of you who do not know Zachary's story, here is an outline of the timeline: (for full story and updates please visit his Caring Bridge site https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/zacharysonnek)

February 2022: Found out that Zachary had a brain tumor, Children's Hospital MN did a biopsy of the tumor.

April 2022: Doctors from Children's Hospital found out the tumor was Grade 1 (non-cancerous). The road to finding the best treatment plan and the medical team begins.

November 2022: Joe, Nikki, Zachary, and Carson flew out to Boston to have Dr. Lissa Baird and her medical team successfully removed what she could safely and found out that the tumor is a Grade 2 (still non-cancerous). Our superhero proved once again his strength, determination, and fight.

January/February 2023: Traveling back to Boston for 6 weeks of radiation.

If you read through the Caring Bridge posts you will quickly feel the love that Joe and Nikki feel for Zachary (like all parents have for their children) and also see how strong their faith in God is. We believe in the power of prayer, that God has a plan for all of us, and that God will not bring things into our lives that we cannot handle. We do not understand why God is bringing Zachary down this journey, but we know we will be with him every step of the way cheering and praying for him non-stop.

If you look up “momma bear” in the dictionary you will likely see a picture of Nikki. Like most momma bears, when your children are sick, injured, sad, stressed, or in danger, they turn into the biggest protectors. They stress and think about their child 24/7, and nothing else matters in the world except the safety and well-being of their child. Well, that is exactly what Nikki is going through. I don’t think she has gotten a full night's sleep or taken a stress-free breath in over a year.

Before you put your dictionary away, if you search “daddy’s boy” you will definitely see a picture of Zachary there. For as long as Zachary has been able to walk he has been his dad’s little shadow whether it is working on projects around the house, running errands, working out, or going for a run, Zachary is always right by his side. As you can imagine, in the last year Zachary has been forced to slow down so his brain could heal and to keep him safe if/when he has his seizures. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to slow down an extremely active (and independent) 10-year-old– but what I have learned from Joe and Nikki, it isn’t easy.

Okay, one last word for you to look up – “brotherhood”. Did you see a picture of Carson and Zachary there? The friendship that these two boys have is very special. Yes, there is the typical brotherly love that of course happens. But there is also a lot of protection, love, competitiveness, giggles and empathy between these two. For the 2022-2023 Carson’s hockey team got a new team captain– Z Bear. The love that Carson and his teammates show Zachary is exactly what he needs during this time when he is unable to do the things he loves. Thankfully cheering on his big brother and his friends will always be something Zachary aka Z Bear loves to do!

We are hoping that after reading and learning a bit more about Team ZacharyStrong you have a glimpse into their lives and can see how each person in the family is going through changes during this time. We are wanting to raise funds to help relieve some stress for Joe, Nikki, and the boys as they continue down this journey. All funds that are raised and not used by Joe and Nikki will be donated to another family or organization in need in ZacharyStrong’s honor.

All our love,

Zachary’s Aunties

Laura & Pam

*If you feel more comfortable sending via Venmo or to a P.O. Box please feel free.

Venmo: @ZacharyStrongFund (the name Laura Hill shows and the picture of Zachary from above)

Address:

Zachary Sonnek Fund

P.O. Box 9337

North St. Paul, MN 55109

All donations will be deposited into a ZacharyStrong account and transferred to Joe and Nikki after they are all home from Boston.