Support for Young Patients Grows Through ‘Jeremy Cares’

You never know which path life is going to take.

"What began as a personal tragedy for the George family of Avon Lake, has become a blessing for some young people in our community.

Early in 2008, Jeremy George, a 17-year-oldwrestler in his senior year, came down with what he thought was the flu. After a series of tests, Jeremy and his family learned that he had T-Cell leukemia.

That discovery led to a year and a half of chemotherapy, radiation and transfusions at Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. Jeremy father, Don, had to quit his job to stay at his son’s side through the ordeal. His mother Debbie would go to the hospital every morning before work, and brother Ben was there whenever he had a chance.

Late in 2008, Jeremy’s leukemia relapsed and doctors said his only option was a stem cell transplant. Ben, only 12 at the time, agreed to be his brother’s cell donor. The doctors killed Jeremy’s cells and transplanted harvested stem cells from Ben.

With both boys in the hospital for Christmas, friends and family arrived at Rainbow on Dec. 23 to deliver presents and some holiday cheer. “They set up a huge meal in the hallway and brought gifts,” Debbie George recalls. “We were so overwhelmed by their support. I thought that we couldn’t possibly pay them back.”

"We were so blessed,” she said. “So many people don’t have the support that we did. That was in some ways the truest Christmas we ever had.”

George said their supporters organized a number of fund raisers, including a golf outing. In 2009, with Jeremy finally in remission from his disease, the golf outing became an organization called Jeremy Cares. “We want to pay it forward, the support we received,” George explained.

That year, the Jeremy Cares Golf Outing raised $10,000. “We bought Christmas presents for the patients at Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, some games for the families staying there and a laptop computer,” she said. In 2010, the organization donated $5,000 to the Ronald McDonald House to sponsor a room.

“We didn’t stay at Ronald McDonald House, but we used the family room and we know what those families are going through,” George added. On every Dec. 23, the family takes gifts to the patients at Rainbow.

“This January, we achieved our 501C status and became a true charity,” she said. “We want to keep it growing. We’ve formed a coalition with other organizations to create an umbrella group and have more power.”

 "Our number one goal is a cure. Until that time, there are a lot of families that need help,” she said. “If we can bring even one minute of joy to them, it’s worth it.”

"The annual We Love Jeremy Golf Outing is Aug. 13, with a 9 a.m. shotgun start at Sweetbriar Golf Course, 750 Jaycox Rd. “This year, we’re playing the Legacy course. The fee includes lunch, a steak dinner, beverages and a Chinese raffle,” George said. Sign-up is $360 per foursome. Visit www.jeremycares.org for details.

Editor's note: See Jeremy and his mother from this year's Relay For Life, held June 4 - 5.