Meet ASK Kid Eliza

For most kids, the end of the school year means looking forward to summer break, playing outside, and just being a kid. But for Eliza, an outdoorsy eight-year-old who loves watching Disney’s Sofia the First, the end of first grade brought an unexpected turn.

Eliza had a lump on the inside of her right knee. In the beginning she wasn’t acting any differently; she wasn’t tired or sick, but as the lump grew, it began to get in her way.

"When I did my exercise, I was supposed to put my knees together, and I couldn't," Eliza recalls about her ballet class. It was becoming painful just to put her legs together.

A visit to the doctor led to an MRI. The results revealed a shocking Ewing's sarcoma diagnosis. Not only was there a tumor in her knee, but the cancer had also metastasized, causing a secondary lung cancer. In a single day, life for Eliza and her family was completely turned upside down. 

Eliza with family

Eliza with sister

Because of her treatment, Eliza had to spend much of her time at the hospital and she found herself missing school and her friends. For a girl who loves learning and hanging out with classmates, missing an entire school year was a heavy challenge.

But Eliza’s family wasn't walking this path alone. ASK stepped in right away to provide emotional, financial, educational, and social support.

Eliza formed an instant bond with ASK’s Education Support Navigator, Amy Fender.

"Amy went to the school, and we did a Zoom call with the class," Eliza's mom, Nicole, remembers. Amy’s in-service presentation to Eliza’s class helped explain her diagnosis and how her classmates  could be good and supportive friends when she returned.

“It kind of helped explain why she wasn't there... we didn't really have to explain to kids why she just abruptly left school. It was super cute and fun for the kids, too."

Beyond educational support, ASK helped Eliza's family with the things they needed most, giving them one less thing to worry about.

“ASK has helped me financially because I haven't been able to work,” Nicole shares. “I definitely wouldn't have had a lot of my bills paid because my husband couldn't do it alone. But [ASK] has always given us things we could do while we were in the hospital and support outside the hospital as well. Amy has been a blessing for her.”

Support beyond the clinic walls included finding comfort with other families who understood the journey through ASK’s Community & Connection events. In March, Eliza and her mom joined Amy and other ASK families in Southwest Virginia to take part in the Freedom First St. Patrick's Day Parade.

Eliza at the St. Patrick's Day Parade 2026

Eliza at the St. Patrick's Day Parade 2026

Eliza at the St. Patrick's Day Parade 2026

"I think that was her first time really being out around a whole bunch of people," Nicole says. "We saw a lot of dogs, we were counting dogs and waving at people. Forty dogs, at least! It was really fun," Eliza recalled.

For Nicole, the parade offered a rare and beautiful moment of peace:

"You didn't have to explain why you were there, or anything like that. The kids all kind of just went with the flow, and it was never 'why don't you have hair?' or anything like that. You usually keep your guard up, but [at ASK events] you can just let it down, and everything was as smooth as it can be."

With treatments behind her, Eliza’s energy is back in full swing. "Now she wants to be outside the moment she wakes up," Nicole laughs. "She loves to ride her bike... she'd be on her bike 24/7 if I let her! Anything outside, to run and jump, and all the things that she was not able to do last year. She's fully embraced it, but she's most excited to go to the beach this year."

Having their lives disrupted by cancer has inspired Nicole to speak out about the critical need for better pediatric medical resources.

"Just advocate that the kids really don't have the treatments that are built for them," Nicole says. "Childhood cancer is not fun—no kid should have it…Our lives were literally turned upside down in a day, and we're still recovering from that. [It is so nice to have] the community as a whole support us, I hope everybody would have that."

Thanks to the support and generosity of our ASK community, Eliza can finally play outside, let her guard down, and simply be a kid again.