LEVI TSU

#TEAMLEVI

Levi is a 3-year-old local from Rolling Meadows, IL
and we’re on a mission to raise
$5,000 to send Levi and his family on a dream trip to
Disney World and Give Kids The World Village
where they can make wonderful memories together,
OUTSIDE of the hospital!

Levi was a healthy, cheerful and smiley 9- month old baby. He was thriving and loved to laugh. But in March of 2020 just as the world was shutting down with COVID, our lives took a turn for the worse when we found out that Levi had a brain tumor pressing up against his cerebellum. We had noticed signs that something wasn’t right - Levi was losing gross motor skills, tired, sleeping for longer periods of time, unable to feed without choking. Our search for answers ultimately led us to Lurie Children’s Hospital where they admitted him for an MRI and we received the horrific news that our baby boy had a rare and aggressive brain tumor called AT/RT. 50 kids in the US are diagnosed with this type of brain cancer yearly. Doctors told us we had been “struck by lightening” when it came to diagnoses. These past 3 years have been challenging. Most of it has been filled with what feels like endless treatment, hospitalizations, seeing Levi in life threatening situations over and over again. As parents, the trauma has been difficult. Yet through this experience, we have also grown as a family. We had to learn over night how to navigate the medical world and how to become the best advocates for our son. It’s hard to remember life before diagnosis or what Levi was like before cancer because he’s spent most of his life in treatment. As sad as that is to say, Levi has never let his diagnosis define him. He marches to the beat of his own drum and is the funniest, smartest and brightest toddler you’ll ever meet. Meeting Levi you would never know that he has so many medical complexities nor that he has a life threatening illness. He is loud, fun, social, and loves to make people laugh. He loves to observe the world around him and enjoys people watching. He is the strongest person I know. He has had to endure multiple toxic and deadly treatments over and over again and be subjected to more pain than any human should ever know. And yet he continues to thrive and love life. He loves all things cars, trains, trucks, and cooking related. He loves to spend time with his favorite people in the world - Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Will and now baby Gabriel. Much of our time as a family is spent shuttling Levi back and forth to the doctor or to the next medical appointment. While Levi is now entering a phase of more normalcy, we hope he can attend school more regularly and have more of a routine that is not so centered around his diagnosis. The dream of going to Give Kids the World as a family would mean so much to us because it allows for us to just enjoy spending time as a family and introduce Levi to new things and new experiences which he loves. It would be an exciting adventure to have as a family and a nice break from all the challenging medical appointments that usually make up our routine.

- Shannon Tsu