For most VI boys, life is spent playing with toys, throwing the ball with dad and beginning to learn their ABCs.
But for Blake Brown-Feck, a resident of Eureka in the southeastern part of the state, life is a different story.
Brown-Feck, whose grandparents are Bob and Shirley Feck of Great Bend, was recently diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia — Acute Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia or JMML.
Because the expenses for treatment and traveling to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo., a 300-mile round trip, are considerable, the Community National Bank in Eureka has set up a Blake Brown Benefit Fund.
On Oct. 16, Cliff Strickler is holding the Blake Brown-Feck Benefit Softball Tournament in Eureka, Strickler said the community’s response has been overwhelming.
“I’ve put on a lot of benefit tournaments and I haven’t seen anything like this,” Strickler said. “Our local softball league has trouble getting three or four teams to play, but we got 12 teams in three days for this.”
The entry fee for the tournament is $100, and all of the proceeds and donations will go directly to the Blake Brown Benefit Fund to support the family’s expenses.
So far, Strickler said that with private donations and corporate sponsorship, they have raised $3,000. The entry fees will bring in another $1,200, and Strickler said that they hope to raise around $1,000 the day of the tournament.
“We are also having a volleyball tournament and there will be a smoker cooker going at both fields and inflatable jump houses for the kids to play in,” Strickler said. “It will kind of be like a fall festival with all of the benefits going to the family.”
The entry fee for the volleyball tournament is $15, and Strickler said that 12 teams is the limit for the softball tournament, but they will be accepting as many entries for the volleyball tournament as he can.
Men’s teams will play at Lions Fields, and the coed softball games will be held at the Eureka city diamond. The first games will begin at 8 a.m.
Strickler said that there has also been a 42-inch LCD TV donated by a Eureka furniture store that will be raffled off during the tournaments.
JMML accounts for only 1 to 2 percent of children’s leukemia, and there are only an estimated 25-50 new cases diagnosed each year. It generally affects children under 6 years old.
Brown-Feck’s best option is a bone marrow transplant. Without it, he has a 5-percent chance of survival.
Strickler said that to his knowledge, a match has not been found.
There will be a bone marrow testing station set up at the Eureka city diamond for anyone willing to see if they are a potential donor.
If you would like to be tested to see if you are a match, you can find more information at www.bethematch.org or call 1-800-627-7692.
If you would like to help, donate or buy raffle tickets, contact Cliff Strickler at 620-583-4665.
Eureka comes together to help child with ailment