Fundraiser Sunday to help ‘little princess’ fight cancer

PALMER — Gabriella “Gabby” Matthews, 4, doesn’t want to be the youngest princess in history.

She’d rather live to be one of the oldest.

Friends have organized a fundraiser Saturday to help offset the cost of travel and hospital expenses as the Matthews family travels to Washington for Gabby’s surgery Jan. 14 at Seattle Children’s Hospital. The surgery has become necessary to remove a tumor that is compressing Gabby’s airway.

The fundraiser is from 1 to 6 p.m., Jan. 3 in the Mat-Su Borough Gym in Palmer. A bake sale and silent auction are planned from 2 to 5 p.m.

April Matthews, Gabby's mother, said she is grateful for the support she has received thus far.*

Gabby, now 4, was 18 months old when she was diagnosed with neuroblastoma. She has completed six cycles of chemotherapy to shrink the tumor in her neck, which have ultimately proven unsuccessful.

April is a single parent and is unable to work due to Gabby’s medical needs. April’s mother — the girls’ grandmother — is her only support system, and with two other daughters ages 10 and 11, they all have lot to juggle.

Doctors at Seattle Children’s Hospital decided to stop chemo treatments last year since it wasn’t helping and watch the tumor. Since then, the tumor has grown 1 cm in diameter each direction and is now compressing her airway. As a result, Gabriella now has to sleep with an oxygen mask.

The surgery is very risky because the tumor surrounds her tongue, vocal box, carotid artery and shoulder. But because it is compressing her airway, doctors have decided surgery is the best course of action.

The Matthews need to be at the Children’s Hospital a couple days before the date of surgery, and the fundraiser is only about a week in advance of their flight.

People who wish to donate online can visit hope.ly/1xwzfUa, or look for Gabby's Fight Against Neuroblastoma Cancer on giveforward.com.

To deposit money directly into a Wells Fargo account for Gabby’s fight against cancer, use the number 2588006755.

To contribute miles to the Matthews family, use account number 142304035.

Contact April Matthews with questions about any of the above at aprilouise1780@gmail.com.

Contact Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.

*Note: An earlier edition of this story erroneously reported that the family had received free airplane tickets from Alaska Airlines for transportation to Seattle, due to a source's misunderstanding.