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"Jane" is a young girl on Cape Cod who was diagnosed with an aggressive leukemia on Christmas Eve 2009. She has undergone almost one year of treatment and is facing another fourteen months of chemotherapy, assuming she is able to tolerate the full course. Jane's family must transport her frequently to the hospital in Boston as well to other medical appointments. Despite some serious setbacks over the summer, Jane is back at home with her family for the holidays and is functioning as well as can be expected for a spirited child undergoing chemotherapy. Last May, the Masonic Angel Foundation's Laptops for KidZ project received a request from Jane's school adjustment counselor for a refurbished laptop computer that Jane could use to try and keep up with her school work. According to the counselor that computer has become a "lifeline" for this little girl. She uses it to do school work when she feels well enough. The machine is also utilized to video conference with her classmates on occasion and to keep in touch with them via email. Earlier this fall a relative gave Jane a digital camera. This child has had a wonderful time with that gift. She takes dozens of pictures and often "chronicles" her trips to the hospital for treatment. Over time Jane's parents have accumulated several albums of the world through Jane's eyes. Recently the Laptops for KidZ project provided Jane with a color inkjet printer both for printing her photos as well as for the occasional printing of school work. The school counselor reported that Jane went through a whole ink supply in the ten days she had the printer. There is quite an impressive collection of her photos in the family's albums now. Meanwhile, Jane's family struggles with many other challenges. In addition to the loss of income necessitated by parents caring for a seriously ill child, there are some areas where medical insurance and other assistance does not reach. One of the biggest non-covered challenges the family faces is the high gasoline bill resulting from frequent 200-mile round trips to Boston. The local Masonic Angel Fund chapter has stepped up to assist with the cost of fuel to take Jane on those all-important trips. Working with an independent service station that has helped countless Masonic Angel Fund families over the years, the local MAF has opened an account at the station that the family can bill against when they are short on gas money.
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