LAURINBURG — For the Fedak family, no bell had a sweeter sound than when Madison Fedak rang the all-clear bell on Monday, signaling a hopeful end to her battle with bone cancer at Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte.
The 6-year-old rang the bell with her unicorn stuffed animal surrounded by family, friends and hospital staff.
“A lot of emotions were running through our minds,” said Michael Fedak, her father. “We’re done, she is gonna be fine, we are so thankful.”
Madison was 5 when her parents discovered something was off when the little girl walked.
“It was April 4 of last year when we noticed she was walking and running kind of funny,” said Fedak. “That night she fell and her mother said her leg didn’t look right, so we took her to the emergency room.”
After a few scans, the family found out Madison had a tumor in her right femur. A week later they got the diagnosis — osteosarcoma. The next 10 months would be a long, brave journey for the girl, her father, mother Laura and sister Riley.
“It was a total surprise, we did the whole genealogy thing and there were no cancers in the family on either side, other than those who smoked,” said Fedak.
The family traveled from their home in Laurinburg to Charlotte for Madison to receive various treatments, including chemotherapy and surgeries at Levine Children’s Hospital. Last July, Madison had surgery to remove the tumor from her leg. Then, she had her second round of chemotherapy.
But they were not alone.
Madison came up with the idea to make “Hope Ropes,” handmade keychains with colorful beads. The idea turned into a small business when support came from all over to give to her hobby. The ropes distracted her from the side effects of chemo and she gave the rope to other patients in the hospital. Madison with the help of her mother and others made “Ropes” to be sold at last years’ Relay for Life and almost all were sold.
The family received help and support from many in Laurinburg, like Laurel Hill Elementary and St. Luke United Methodist Church, who teamed up to support Madison and her family at Relay for Life. Small businesses like Colour Me Creatif Paint Your Own Pottery Studio and Jerry’s Deli also chipped in.
Make A Wish Foundation has granted Madison’s special wish for the girl to meet a celebrity.
“She will meet Chef Duff Goldman, who does the Kid’s Baking Championship (TV show). They will fly us to LA, where he works in July for one or two days,” said Fedak.
Michael says the Fedaks are looking forward to getting back to normal and, now that Madison has the all-clear, she still has a few goals to reach.
“She has to work on walking and go back for checkups,” said Fedak. “But she told her uncle to get his boat ready because she wants to go water skiing!”
Fedak wanted to thank the community and foundations who supported them through Madison’s process.
“We are blessed by this small community and are thankful for the support from people, churches, and foundations like Isabella Santos Foundation, Team Blaize Foundation, and Make a Wish,” said Fedak. “We want to give back to those who gave to us.”
Jael Pembrick can be reached at 910-506-3169 or [email protected].
