6-year-old girl battling brain cancer receives money raised by Oak Forest High School students
OAK FOREST, Ill. - Students at Oak Forest High School collected enough spare change to give a $1,000 gift to the family of 6-year-old Maggie DeVries who is facing what her mom calls the "silly spot" on her brain and an operable tumor.
Maggie's parents are OFHS alums. So when fellow Bengals got wind of her story, they started "Love for Maggie," a fundraising effort that got pretty competitive with the classrooms, one of them, raising $500.
The final tally was over $1,000 and Maggie's mom, Erin, was beaming with gratitude.
"It's just special to me that you guys thought of us and we're not even in Oak Forest anymore and you still thought of our family and understanding you collected change for us, which is crazy," Erin DeVries said. "Then you reached that big number with change that sounds like a lot of effort. You're all so young and amazing and I just really, really, really appreciate it."
Maggie DeVries | Provided
"We really bought into the idea that every little bit helps," one student said. "So we all we also wanted to do the best we could …. Just to provide some special moments for a little girl, so her memories aren't just hospitals and doctors and [she can] get some great memories of life."
Erin said Maggie, who loves cheerleading, dance and Target, will be getting a shopping spree thanks to that gift.