Young Cancer Patient Brings Holiday Cheer to the Hospital

A senior at Enfield High School may be struggling of an illness of her own, but she's turning the tables and paying it forward.

Kyla Pokorny, 17, who put her college plans on hold to finish her latest round of chemotherapy, wanted to lighten the load for other young people spending the holidays in the hospital.

Pokorny set up a fundraising page and has collected thousands of dollars in donations to benefit oncology patients at Connecticut Children's Medical Center, where she's currently a patient.

"My goal is to get money together in order to buy Christmas presents and grocery store gift cards for pediatric cancer patients and their families who are struggling financially," she wrote on the GoFundMe page.

Pokorny, who is battling brain cancer and first got sick years ago, said it's a cause that's near and dear to her heart. She's been on the receiving end of the kindness of strangers and said it made all the difference.

"[Donors] adopted my family for Christmas and got us a lot of gifts, and it was probably the best Christmas ever," she explained. "I knew someday when I have enough money to do something like that, I really want to be able to do that."

She doesn't have any of her own money, but that didn't stop Pokorny from finding a way to give back. It's especially personal because Pokorny dreams of becoming a nurse.

After raising $3,250 – and far exceeding her goal of $2,800 – Pokorny hand delivered some of the gifts.

"She started crying," Pokorny said, of the mother of a sick little boy. "She was like, 'I really wanted to get him all this stuff, but I couldn't afford it,' and it was probably the best thing ever. That was my Christmas present, that I could provide that for them."

Pokorny's social studies teacher, Cindy Kelleher, said she's never had a student like Pokorny.

"Not only is she battling her own health issues, but she maintains an A average and she's so generous in what she does," Kelleher said.

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