‘Our little angel’ Laney Brown, 8, passes away
By Steven Henshaw Reading Eagle
Thursday December 26, 2013 12:01 AM
Many of the thousands who gathered Saturday on a West Reading street to sing Christmas carols to Delaney Brown probably never heard of the 8-year-old girl until last week. But the dying girl’s story, followed by tens of thousands via social media, resonated in the community and far beyond.
Delaney, nicknamed “Laney,” died early Wednesday, four days after people fulfilled one of her wishes by singing in front of her home.
Laney took her last breath at 3:10 a.m., surrounded by her family and friends, the family announced Christmas morning.
“My heart breaks right now,” her mother, Jennifer Brown, wrote on the Team Laney Facebook page. “Our little angel on earth earned her pink glittery angel wings in heaven.”
Laney, a second-grader at Wyomissing Hills Elementary School, was diagnosed in May with a rare form of leukemia. She received five rounds of radiation therapy and a stem cell transplant in September, and there were high hopes that she would beat the disease. Residents held fundraisers to help defray the family’s medical expenses. The Team Laney Facebook page served as a rallying point for her supporters.
On Dec. 17 her mother dropped a bombshell on Facebook: Doctors had told the family the cancer had spread beyond their ability to treat it. They referred her to hospice care.
Even as her illness worsened, Laney never stopped having faith. She continued to smile in spite of her pain, and she showed more concern for others than for herself, family spokesman Christopher Winters said.
“Laney generated so much spirit and hope that I don’t think we’ve begun to realize the impact she has and will have,” Winters said. “Laney was a gift to all of us, and now it is up to us to choose how to use that gift. Whether you heard about Laney five months ago or five days ago, you couldn’t help but be drawn in by her smile, her faith, her family, her story, her courage.
“With the love and strong faith of her family, Laney was able to change lives and remind us of the true meaning of Christmas. The unbelievable support and response of this wonderful community and people across this country and around the world is, in itself, a Christmas miracle.”
Family members have asked that people respect their privacy as they mourn.
Those whose hearts were captured by Laney’s story expressed messages of condolence via social media Wednesday. The Team Laney page had gained more than 124,000 “likes” on Facebook by Christmas afternoon.
Winters said the Browns will miss Laney in many ways, especially the way her smile, even in her sickness, would light up a room.
“She has one of the most loving families I’ve ever met, and that love and their strong faith allowed them to never, ever lose hope,” he said.
Donations to assist the family with escalating medical expenses may be made http://www.youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/delaney-brown-team-laney/85456 or to the Four Diamonds Fund at: http://fourdiamonds.donordrive.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=donorDrive.donate
See also:
‘Our little angel got her pink glittery wings’: Girl, 8, who had thousands sing carols to her as one of her last wishes dies on Christmas morning
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Delaney Brown suffered from a rare form of childhood cancer called acute myeloid leukemia with monosomy 7
She was given just days to live by doctors last week and died this morning
Spoke with pop star Taylor Swift among other bucket list items
10,0000 people came out to sing Christmas carols to her on Saturday
A young girl with terminal cancer has passed away after her plight gained national attention.
Delaney ‘Laney’ Brown of West Reading, Pennsylvania passed away early Christmas morning.
One of the last kind gifts she received was the support of thousands of strangers who came to her front lawn to sing Christmas carols on Saturday night.
That pick-me-up came the day after she knocked another dream- speaking with Taylor Swift- off her bucket list on her eighth birthday.
Laney’s mother and father were by her side when she passed away at home in West Reading, Pennsylvania just after 3am on Christmas morning
Laney died early Wednesday morning with her relatives updating her followers with her status on the ‘Team Laney’ Facebook page.
‘My heart breaks right now. Our little angel on earth earned her pink glittery angel wings in heaven. She took her last breath at home in her bed at 3:10 surrounded by all her family and friends. I miss her so much already,’ the latest update from about 5am on Christmas morning read.
Followers were well aware that Laney’s health had taken a turn for the worse, with a lengthy update on Tuesday night telling how the family was praying for a Christmas miracle.
They had a check in with their doctors Tuesday night so that she could have a transfusion and new tests.
‘We went up there hoping that maybe we would get a miracle and were just devastated hearing all those results,’ the update read.
‘I can hear you now!!! Love you!’: Delaney showed her appreciation for the throng of Christmas well-wishers in a Facebook post on Saturday night as she lay stuck in her bed
‘Our doctors focus then turned to how uncomfortable Laney had been for days. They were determined to get that under control. Our baby should not being struggling like this while on hospice.
‘She is extremely comfortable right now so I guess not being able to hear her beautiful little voice again or see her gazing at me with those big blue eyes is the trade off we had to make.
‘I lay next to her all day and all night kissing her beautiful face and stroking every finger on her tiny hands.
‘Tonight is Christmas Eve, a time when they are usually getting excited about how they are going to sneak down stairs early to see what Santa got them and teasing each other about what they got for each other. I miss her voice so badly right now.’
Brave: The brave little girl has remained upbeat, her parents say, and was even courageous enough to mark off another wish from her list–to pet an alligator
Laney received her cancer diagnosis in May but the past week has been the toughest after doctors told the family that there was little else to be done.
‘Today we were told the worst news of our lives,’ wrote Delaney’s mom Jennifer Brown last week. ‘Laney has 70% cancer cells in her blood. If they would treat the cancer the virus that she has would kill her. And if they treat the virus the cancer will kill her.’
Laney suffered from a rare form of childhood cancer called acute myeloid leukemia with monosomy 7, ‘making her quite rare,’ according to the Facebook page.
Just 10 children a year are diagnosed with the illness in America.
Delaney was diagnosed with leukemia in May and has since undergone five rounds of radiation and a stem cell transplant
The sweet but tough little girl, who loved fashion and swimming in the ocean, went through five rounds of radiation and a stem cell transplant.
Photos of the beautiful gathering, which over 4,000 people indicated on Facebook they’d attend, show throngs of supporters outside Delaney’s home—many in Santa hats and holding candles as they gave the brave girl her Christmas wish.
Singer Taylor Swift, who grew up in the neighboring town of Wyomissing, also helped Delaney knock an item off her bucket list.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation helped connect Swift with the Brown family last week when it became clear that Delaney has very little time left.
‘Laney was so nervous to talk to her because she is such a ‘famous celebrity,’ Jennifer Brown wrote on Facebook.
‘I was actually worried that when Taylor Facetimed her that she would be to scared to talk but Taylor was fabulous!! She really engaged Laney in conversation. Laney lit up and had a huge smile on her face. I can’t thank Taylor enough.’
‘Prior to her cancer she was a normal kid,’ writes Delaney’s mother. ‘Spent as much time as possible at the pool or in the ocean. She also loved to dance in ballet. She loves animal prints, hot pink, and she has a special eye for fashion!’
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How beautiful a child she must have been and how blessed to have such a loving family! I’m sure she is sorely missed; as parents, we should count ourselves extra blessed to have our children with us for even another day. An inspiring example of courage, hope, and love by family, friends, and community!