WESTSIDE -- A benefit spaghetti supper and auction will be held Saturday, Sept. 20, for Coltrane Smith, son of Justin and Sonja Smith of Siloam Springs.
The event will be held from 4:30 to 7 p.m. at the Community Christian Fellowship, 525 S. Lincoln Street in Siloam Springs. A meal of spaghetti, garlic bread, salad and a drink will be available for $7. A silent auction will be held from 4:30 to 5:30 and a live auction from 6 to 7 will feature some of the larger items. All proceeds will go to pay Coltrane's medical expenses.
Items to be auctioned include a handmade coffee table, several Branson attractions, tickets to Razorback games, a guitar, a woman's watch, an American goldfinch painting by Troy Anderson, a $400 value tanned elk hide and many gift certificates. Pies and other baked goods will also be up for bids.
Coltrane, who will be two years old on Oct. 13, was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma in May. During his first stay, he spent 17 days in the hospital. After multiple scans, doctors discovered a tumor in his abdominal area near his kidney. He also has a tumor visible on the outside of his skull. Coltrane's treatment will include several cycles of chemotherapy, a planned surgery to remove the abdominal tumor, stem cell harvesting and transplant and possible radiation.
Coltrane's mother, Sonja, has been a second grade teacher at Glenn Duffy Elementary School in Gravette for five or six years but she has had to resign from her teaching job because of all the medical appointments and care that he has needed and will need over the course of his treatment. The treatments are expected to last about 14 months. The Smiths also have another son, Jackson, 4, to care for. Fortunately, Coltrane's father, Justin, is self-employed and has been able to continue to work by adjusting his schedule around Coltrane's doctor visits.
Coltrane is not the only family member who has had health concerns. Sonja's father, Rick Long of Siloam Springs, died recently after losing his battle with brain cancer. Her mother, Sandra Long, was a first grade teacher in Gentry for 20 years or more.
According to an article Justin wrote for Peekaboo magazine, Coltrane has had "many scans, MRIs and blood transfusions, chemotherapy, all sorts of tests and three biopsies." He just began a 21-day cycle of chemotherapy Aug. 27. That is expected to be followed by another 21-day cycle after which he will be evaluated to see how the chemo is working. If the treatments are working as doctors hope, he will be scheduled for surgery to remove the abdominal tumor. One side effect of the chemo treatments is loss of hearing, so Coltrane's hearing will also be checked periodically.
Coltrane's chemo treatments are being done at St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, and his parents and brother stay in the hospital room while he is undergoing treatment. The stem cell transplant will be done in Oklahoma City, and the family will be away from home for six weeks.
Friends who were concerned about the family's health issues and the resultant heavy expenses have set up a Facebook page where monetary donations can be made online. They have set a goal of $70,000 and so far have raised $15,000 of that amount. Persons wanting to help can go to gofundme.com/a2wax0 and get information about Coltrane's health, financial goals and progress toward those goals. They can also visit the website csmith.us for more information or email Angie Denver at [email protected].
The Smiths say they have felt a tremendous outpouring of love and support from viewing the responses to the Facebook page. They say they are very grateful for all the help they are receiving. Justin says he and Sonja have no idea what the future holds for them but they are trusting in God to provide them what they need.
"What we need may not be what Sonja and I think we need, but we lean on His understanding, not ours ... We are confident that God has prepared our hearts and souls for this."
General News on 09/03/2014