Doctors first found a tumor in Juana “Wanda” Perez’s brain in early fall of 2004. They operated to remove as much of the tumor as possible, then treated it successfully with radiation and chemotherapy treatments. By Christmas of that year, there were no signs of the tumor and it seemed like a miracle.
But about a year later, in October of 2005, in a routine visit to her doctor, test results revealed that a tumor had returned. The doctors went through the same process, operating on Perez in December before resorting to the treatments once again. But this time, those treatments did not prove successful. Test results returned early last month showed that the radiation and chemotherapy hadn’t helped and the tumor remained, leaving Perez with terminal cancer.
After finding out about the test results, a group of friends from her daughter Daisy’s Hard of Hearing/Profoundly Deaf program at Frankford Elementary school decided to hold a fundraiser to support Perez’s family.
It will cost $10 for adults and $5 for children over 10 to attend the fundraiser, which will be held from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday at the Dagsboro Fire Hall.
“They can’t do much for her now,” said Miriam Lagunes, one of Perez’s friends from the Frankford School’s program. “They’re just waiting for the moment to happen. We’re trying to help because the dad is the one doing all of the work.”
Juana and Marco Perez have three children. Daisy is 8-years-old. Her older brother is 13 and her younger sister Beatriz is 5. Because of Juana’s illness, Marco is now the primary caregiver for the three kids, his Perdue job is the family’s only source of income and he has been trying to pay for medications, doctor’s visits and food since his wife became sick.
Lagunes and Corinne Elliott, the lead teacher of the Frankford School’s program, said that all of the fundraiser’s proceeds will help Marco pay for food and clothes for the three children and Juana’s medications and anything else the family needs.
“Here he was trying to pay for all of the hospital bills, he was the primary caregiver for the kids and he was taking care of his wife,” Elliott said of Marco. “He was overwhelmed.”
The fundraiser will also help pay for Juana’s funeral in Guatemala, something that she has requested. “That’s probably the toughest part (for the family to pay for),” Lagunes said of having Juana taken back to her hometown to be buried. “But those are their wishes.”
Anyone who attends Saturday’s event will eat an authentic Mexican dinner, hear live mariachi music and have a chance to win door prizes and a 50/50 raffle.
The Mountaire plant in Selbyville donated chicken for the event and El Charro, Michoacana, and La Mexicana donated other food and equipment the all-Hispanic parents from the school’s program will use to prepare the food on Saturday.
Members from Indian River’s JROTC will be serving the food along with members from the Future Farmers of America program. The Lord Baltimore Women’s Club, who has also helped the profoundly deaf program in Frankford, has donated money and prizes to be used at the fundraiser and the school’s teachers and administrators have already donated to the cause, Lagunes said.
Although the fundraiser will not relieve any of the family’s pain, Elliott added, she hopes it will help with the tremendous financial burden of the family’s situation.
“I love the family,” Elliott said. “I’ve worked with them for three years and your heart goes out to them. You can’t imagine (the children) without their mother.”
Those who want to donate to the Perez’s cause can attend the fundraiser on Saturday or directly deposit money care of “The Marco Perez Family” to Citizens Bank at 13 the Circle 01B-0027 in Georgetown, DE 19947.