Eamon Rodriguez is a nine year old boy from Tappan who enjoys playing basketball, flag football, video games and being with his friends. In January, he began having migraines and bouts of nausea that concerned his parents. His mom and dad listened to their intuition and took Eamon to the neurologist and then to the hospital. They found a four centimeter size tumor in the back of his skull and Eamon underwent emergency surgery to remove it successfully. Eamon was diagnosed with Medulloblastoma group 4 and had 31 rounds of radiation as part of his treatment and is undergoing maintenance therapy. Through all the treatments, Eamon showed incredible strength and bravery. Eamon looks forward to his 4th grade year at Cottage Lane and playing with his younger sister, Isla.

Maggie Towsley is a friendly, thoughtful, funny 16 year old at Pearl River High School. She lives in Pearl River with her parents and younger twin brothers. In December of 2021, after months of unexplained dizziness, tremors, and falling, Maggie was diagnosed with Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy. Since then, her seizures have progressed to full body convulsions and loss of consciousness. The medications that she has been given have either awful side effects or been ineffective, causing Maggie to miss school to go for extensive medical testing. In the midst of all this, Maggie was also diagnosed with PNES (pseudoseizures). The entire family has become trained on how to protect Maggie when she is seizing and how to administer her emergency medications when her seizures are prolonged. As she has aged, her epilepsy has also changed and there are few medications left to be tried. If they are unsuccessful, there is a probability that Maggie will need brain surgery. Despite all this uncertainty, Maggie is very excited to start her senior year! She would like to study psychology in college and hopes to one day be a school psychologist to help other young people who may need support.

David Hlovatsky is a nine year old boy from New City who is undergoing rehabilitation following a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that he sustained in a car accident this past March in North Carolina. While his older brother has since made a full recovery, tragically his middle brother passed from his injuries. David underwent extensive medical treatment in North Carolina, but was eventually able to be transported to Blythedale Children’s Hospital in NY for specialized pediatric rehabilitation. He is making significant progress in his cognitive, physical, and mental functioning, but the recovery journey is long. There is strong hope for a full recovery as David has incredible strength and determination. Before the accident, David was active in soccer, swimming, Taekwondo and Ukrainian dancing. He looks forward to returning to the activities he loves and embracing the second chance he has been given.