GAA stars' heartwarming gesture to help Galway cousin, 6, with leukemia battle
Alfie’s cousin who has started this says ‘Alfie doesn't want to be a hero; he just wants to be a normal kid’
A 44km charity hike to help a young Galway boy with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and his family starts this Saturday
It is being organised for Alfie, aged 6, from Tynagh in Galway by his cousin Shane Smith, Castleconnell.
Shane, along with his brothers, Clem, Adrian, Padraig, Niall, and Cathal, played with Ahane GAA Club throughout the years and some would have played with Limerick at various age groups.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for Alfie, and his family, and to sponsor Cathal and friends who are hiking the Slieve Felim Way for the brave six-year-old boy this Saturday, August 1. An incredible sum of over €32,000 has been donated thus far.
It ends in Silvermines County Tipperary with a fundraising event in the church hall and famous Ryan’s Thatched Bar in Killoscully, County Tipperary on Saturday evening. Shane’s brother, Cathal, and host of other talented singers and musicians will travel from near and far to play a wide range of music. All monies raised will go towards helping Alfie’s recovery.
On November 5 last, Alfie’s family’s world was completely shattered. In a matter of hours, their bright, beautiful boy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
The appeal on the GoFundMe page says that just days before, he was a vibrant, carefree child who loved hurling and swimming every single week.
“Looking back now with a breaking heart, the warning signs were there, disguised as ordinary childhood - quiet complaints of leg pains in the dark of night, sudden fever spikes, night sweats, and a deep fatigue we couldn't quite explain.
“After a birthday party at a play centre, we noticed deep bruises on his legs. We tried to comfort ourselves by thinking they were just from hurling or the bouncy castle.”
On November 5, Alfie came home from school early, ghostly pale and completely drained.
“In the emergency room, our instincts were confirmed in the most devastating way possible. Within hours, our innocent little boy was a cancer patient.
“The next day, we were rushed 175kms away to Crumlin. By November 7, a central line was surgically placed in his tiny chest, and the grueling, toxic regime of chemotherapy began.
“Watching your child go through this is a living nightmare. Alfie’s body has been battered by the very treatments meant to save him. He relies constantly on blood and platelet transfusions just to keep going. Worse, he has suffered rare, agonising side effects and terrifying episodes of severe anaphylaxis - his body violently rejecting the life-saving medicines he desperately needs.”
Yet, through the tears, the pain, and the terror, Alfie remains a ray of sunshine.
“Even when he is too weak to move, he somehow finds the strength to force a smile, breaking our hearts even more.
“The cruelest part is watching what this illness has stolen from Alfie. Because he is dangerously immunocompromised, his life has shrunk to the walls of a hospital or his bedroom. He cannot go to school, he cannot play his beloved sports, and he is entirely isolated from his friends and peers. He is slipping away from the childhood he deserves.
“Alfie doesn't want to be a hero; he just wants to be a normal kid. Our only wish in this world is to see the heavy shadow of this disease lifted, and to see our sweet, suffering boy healthy and happy once again,” reads the GoFundMe appeal.
Shane says the road ahead is going to be agonisingly long, with Alfie’s treatment spanning two and a half to three years.
“The physical, emotional, and financial toll is completely overwhelming for Alfie's family. They have been uprooted and torn apart just to survive. Valerie (Alfie’s mum) had to walk away from her full-time job to become his carer, and Ian has been forced to reduce his hours, all while they face staggering travel costs for their journeys to the hospital for Alfie’s treatment.