Community rallies to raise money for 5-year-old girl battling cancer
Era is a 5-year-old girl who has been battling leukemia since August 2022. Through the love and support of Winnemucca’s tight-knit community, thousands of dollars have been raised in order to help Era’s family pay for medical expenses associated with her treatment.
On Jan. 10, Era’s uncle and local artist, Danny Ham, partnered with Bella Grazia owner, Jessica Sherburn, to host an art auction and fundraiser for Era’s family. From there, other members of the community got involved in order to make the event as successful as possible.
According to Sherburn, between a silent and live auction, tips, food and personal donations, about $10,000 was raised for Era at the event.
“It was just cool to see everyone come together for such an awful thing, but to find happiness in it too, and find the beauty in the pain,” explained Sherburn.
Leukemia is a cancer that attacks the blood-forming tissues within the body. The symptoms are vast and can be incredibly hard on the body. Treatment often includes chemotherapy.
As of Nov. 28 2022, Era is in remission, but she will still have to undergo treatments for two more years, according to an update to Era’s page—No to Leukemia, Yes to a New Era on gofundme.com.
Her family asks that “you bless Era with positive thoughts and prayers, so that she may be able to smoothly go through this phase with zero hiccups.”
A study through the National Library of Medicine found that the average cost of hospitalization for children leukemia patients to be more than $55,000, which is more than $10,000 higher than adult patients on average.
Having support from the community means that some of the financial burden can be taken off of the family so they can focus on loving Era and encouraging her through this difficult time.
Ham explained that when life doesn’t go as planned, “it’s hard to balance things like this.”
Ham spent hours upon hours creating beautiful paintings to sell for the auction. He works full-time during the day and said that his evenings were filled with time spent working on his art. He also explained how beautifully the community came together to support his niece and how amazing the event was.
According to Sherburn, there was standing only room in Bella Grazia the night of the auction because so many people showed up to support Era and her family.
“Small towns like ours are awesome,” said Ham.
Ham and Sherburn offered special thanks to Jace Edwards, who was the Auctioneer for the fundraiser and provided free advertising, Stunned Photography who provided free picture packages for anyone who spent over $100, Carpet One, who donated money towards food supplies for the event, the Palace Flophouse Tattoo Artist Eric Mercado, who donated two $500 gift cards, Lindsay Mendiola, who donated two free facials, and the Haught Horizon Real Estate Team for many different things.
Sherburn also explained that there were many people who showed up to help as well, including : Rena and Zach Haught, Karen Munson, McKenna Jones, Jared Tangreen, and Deb and Ken Whittaker.