TAYLORVILLE, Ill. (WAND) - A young child named Tenleigh Stokes was diagnosed with Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrome at only 4 months old.
Doctors said she had the possibility to live until the age of 3. Tenleigh is now 6-years-old and though sometimes her pain is difficult to deal with, she goes on every day with a smile.
"Her chest wall is abnormally small and so when she grows her body doesn't grow with her. So her lungs can't expand to the capacity that they should," says Tenleigh's mother, Haylee Shrake.
Every 4 to 6 months, the family has to travel back and forth between Taylorville and Philadelphia to provide their daughter with the best medical assistance they can. Her doctor visits consist of getting rods expanded in her back as she continues to grow.
With recent complications, she is no longer receiving rods and doctors are currently looking for alternative ways to treat her.
One Community member, Joe Schmitz, has been following Tenleigh's journey on social media and says he wanted to help the family financially.
"It was just very touching to have somebody reach out and wanna contribute to us," says Shrake.
Schmitz hosted a fundraiser to help the family get through their expenses and had all things from a bad tournament, lunch, and a silent auction. The fundraiser will finish off on Sunday and friends, family and community members are excited to see more new faces. Schmitz says if you can't attend the fundraiser, donations are acceptable through the families Facebook page: Tenleigh's Troops
