Gabe Pinon was diagnosed with leukemia on Dec. 4, 2003. We noticed that he was pale and tired and took him to our pediatrician. After many hours and blood tests at Western Wake Hospital, our pediatrician called oncologists at UNC and told me to take Gabe there immediately. I could not even stop to pick up my husband on the way. Once at UNC we were told Gabe needed to be admitted immediately because his blood counts were not strong at all. We initially stayed in the hospital for four weeks of chemotherapy and we were there through the Christmas holiday. Gabe was a trooper! Unfortunately, throughout the following months, Gabe had to go to the hospital so often that my husband and I would joke that we were dating every Friday night at the UNC emergency room. It’s hard to believe you would start to know the nurses and technicians who work on the weekend by name! Gabe had several other hospital stays until May 2004. Although he has done well with the treatment, he did have a reaction to a medication which caused seizures. He was rushed to UNC emergency room and admitted to the pediatric ICU because he stopped breathing. It is nearly impossible to watch your child suffer with cancer, but to see him stop breathing was all we could take.  He had a couple more stays during last summer, but it has been almost three months since his last hospital stay!  He swallows all of his daily medications which is a big accomplishment for him. We continue to go to clinic once a month for IV chemotherapy and checkups. Gabe enjoys preschool, playing with his brother and friends, any type of sport activity, from soccer to bowling to baseball to bikes and scooter rides. He is active when he feels good. He loves to play with trains and really enjoys Thomas the Tank Engine! Since Gabe has an older brother, he thinks it is cool to do homework when Eddie does his and he likes to work on his letters and numbers as well as do any kind of craft. Gabe wakes up and asks us each day “Is it happy time yet?” Which, to him, means is it time to start the day and have some fun. He brings an incredible amount of enthusiasm to so many of us throughout the day. It is amazing how this little boy can change how people look at things! Thank you for considering this opportunity to raise funds so vital to the survival of blood cancer victims and to raise those funds in our son’s honor. –Sally Pinon, Mother