JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A prayer vigil is being held Monday for 6-year-old Lucy. Her cancer has returned, this time on her brain.
At 6 years old, Lucy is smaller than those around her, but all these adults look up to her.
“She teaches us what the meaning of life is," said Krystle Tillum, a family friend. "Had it not been her… no hair… you would never know she has cancer.”
“She’s just special," said Kahla Journey, a family friend, as she got choked up.
Lucy’s mom and dad Jessica and Jordan Donmoyer are taking her new diagnosis one step at a time. They say Lucy will keep fighting even if the battle is impossible to win.
“It was February 11, we got the results the following week, saying everything was stable, her bone marrow was clear, we were in a good space. She’s been feeling wonderful," Jessica reminisced.
Then a few weeks later, on a trip to Tallahassee, Lucy had a headache. She wasn’t acting like herself.
Jessica took her to the Emergency Room. She said doctors found something on her brain.
“There’s a tumor there," Jessica said. "There’s something going on in her brain and we need to do emergency surgery. Very shortly after that, they said we needed to do it in Tallahassee because she may not make it.”
“He said she had about 20 minutes before she lost her life," said Jordan.
Lucy had a craniotomy in Tallahassee, then was flown back to Jacksonville.
Cancer can cancel out a lot of the normal parts of life, but the Donmoyers have a support system making sure it won’t take away from Lucy’s childhood.
Jessica says her doctors want to try radiation. She says they don't know what the future holds.
The vigil is at East Pointe Church off Kernan Blvd in Jacksonville at 7 p.m. There will also be a Jeep ride.
Lucy's mom Jessica Donmoyer says her daughter loves Jeeps.
Friends of the family are trying to raise money to give Lucy the best day, every day, for however long she has.
Donmoyer says the prognosis is unclear right now.
One of the missions they have is to raise money to buy the family a pink Jeep, so Lucy can ride around in her dream car. You can learn more about fundraising efforts here.