Amiaya’s Journey to a Sickle Cell Cure — Would You Help Us Share It?
Date Published:
Good Morning,
My name is Ashley Brown, and I'm the mother of 13-year-old Amiaya Brown. I'm also reaching out as a mom, advocate, and small business owner, hoping to connect with organizations that are willing to help amplify Amiaya's story and her upcoming journey toward a cure.
Amiaya has sickle cell disease, a chronic blood disorder that causes severe pain and can lead to serious complications. Over the past two years, she has spent extensive time hospitalized with debilitating pain, severe medication reactions, and episodes that required intensive rehabilitation. Twice, she had to spend time in a rehabilitation center to regain muscle strength after being unable to use her legs for extended periods because of the severity of her pain.
Sickle cell has caused Amiaya to have a very atypical childhood. At 13 years old, she has only experienced 2.5 years of in-person school. She has missed opportunities to spend time with friends, participate in extracurricular activities, and experience simple childhood joys like playing in the snow or jumping in a pool because cold temperatures can trigger a pain crisis.
Yet, she continues to excel.
Despite everything she has endured, Amiaya skipped the second grade, is entering 9th grade virtually, and reads at approximately a 12th-grade level. She has written and published a children's book, is working on her second, and dreams of becoming a pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon.
Now, after a lifetime of hospitalizations, Amiaya has the opportunity to be cured through a bone marrow transplant. Her transplant is scheduled for September 30, 2026, and her younger brother will serve as her donor.
We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity, but we also know the transplant and recovery period will place a significant financial strain on our family. A family friend created our GoFundMe to help us cover essential household expenses, including our mortgage and utilities, while I remain available to care for Amiaya throughout her treatment and recovery.
I'm reaching out to ask whether your organization would consider helping us amplify Amiaya's story by sharing our GoFundMe with your employees, members, supporters, or community through your social media, newsletter, internal communications, or other appropriate channels. If your organization allows individual employees or community members to share causes they believe in, we would be incredibly grateful for that opportunity as well.
You don't have to make a financial contribution to make a difference. A share could put Amiaya's story in front of the person who is able to help us get one step closer to our goal.
Amiaya has spent much of her childhood fighting to simply feel well enough to live it. Now we're fighting to give her the opportunity to experience the life she's been dreaming about.
Thank you for taking the time to read about Amiaya and for considering helping us amplify her story. Whether it's a donation, a share, a prayer, or simply passing her story along, every bit of support means more to our family than I can adequately express.
Warmly,
Ashley Brown
Mother of Amiaya
773-350-1201
brown.ashley1240@gmail.com
https://gofund.me/b81e1d44b
My name is Ashley Brown, and I'm the mother of 13-year-old Amiaya Brown. I'm also reaching out as a mom, advocate, and small business owner, hoping to connect with organizations that are willing to help amplify Amiaya's story and her upcoming journey toward a cure.
Amiaya has sickle cell disease, a chronic blood disorder that causes severe pain and can lead to serious complications. Over the past two years, she has spent extensive time hospitalized with debilitating pain, severe medication reactions, and episodes that required intensive rehabilitation. Twice, she had to spend time in a rehabilitation center to regain muscle strength after being unable to use her legs for extended periods because of the severity of her pain.
Sickle cell has caused Amiaya to have a very atypical childhood. At 13 years old, she has only experienced 2.5 years of in-person school. She has missed opportunities to spend time with friends, participate in extracurricular activities, and experience simple childhood joys like playing in the snow or jumping in a pool because cold temperatures can trigger a pain crisis.
Yet, she continues to excel.
Despite everything she has endured, Amiaya skipped the second grade, is entering 9th grade virtually, and reads at approximately a 12th-grade level. She has written and published a children's book, is working on her second, and dreams of becoming a pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon.
Now, after a lifetime of hospitalizations, Amiaya has the opportunity to be cured through a bone marrow transplant. Her transplant is scheduled for September 30, 2026, and her younger brother will serve as her donor.
We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity, but we also know the transplant and recovery period will place a significant financial strain on our family. A family friend created our GoFundMe to help us cover essential household expenses, including our mortgage and utilities, while I remain available to care for Amiaya throughout her treatment and recovery.
I'm reaching out to ask whether your organization would consider helping us amplify Amiaya's story by sharing our GoFundMe with your employees, members, supporters, or community through your social media, newsletter, internal communications, or other appropriate channels. If your organization allows individual employees or community members to share causes they believe in, we would be incredibly grateful for that opportunity as well.
You don't have to make a financial contribution to make a difference. A share could put Amiaya's story in front of the person who is able to help us get one step closer to our goal.
Amiaya has spent much of her childhood fighting to simply feel well enough to live it. Now we're fighting to give her the opportunity to experience the life she's been dreaming about.
Thank you for taking the time to read about Amiaya and for considering helping us amplify her story. Whether it's a donation, a share, a prayer, or simply passing her story along, every bit of support means more to our family than I can adequately express.
Warmly,
Ashley Brown
Mother of Amiaya
773-350-1201
brown.ashley1240@gmail.com
https://gofund.me/b81e1d44b
