Friends plan cancer benefit for Jessica Jones

Thursday, October 6, 2011
Jessica Jones, sitting with daughters Promise and Zoey, has been battling cancer since February. Friends and family will be holding a benefit for her on Saturday, Oct. 22 at Robe-Ann Park.

Friends and family members will be holding a cancer benefit for Jessica Jones, a 27-year-old mother of two, who was recently diagnosed with salivary gland cancer.

The Saturday, Oct. 22 event will take place at the bandshell in Greencastle's Robe-Ann Park from 3-7 p.m.

A lifelong Putnam County resident, Jones currently resides in Greencastle with her two daughters, Promise, 4, and Zoey, 2. After being diagnosed in February, Jones has been doing everything she can to keep her life as normal as possible.

"It's very rare, so they're trying various treatments to see what works," Jones' cousin, Hannah Gilley, said. "They're just kind of experimenting."

Jones has already completed radiation and is currently taking a pill form of chemotherapy. She will go for a PET scan this month to see if the treatment is working and decide where to go from there.

"She's really tired but fortunately the pill doesn't make her quite as sick," Gilley said. "There's treatments but they don't have a cure."

The ever-increasing mound of medical bills has left Jones working 12-hour shifts at the Walmart Distribution Center, each weekend, a job she had since she was 19 years old.

The benefit, which has been four months in the making, will be having a free-will donation. However, for each donation a raffle ticket will be given out to win a door prize. All money will go toward helping pay for Jones' medical bills. Humble Pie will also be selling pizza as well as donating 50 percent of all sales during the benefit.

"She saw her eating at Chief's one night and called me saying she really wanted to help," Gilley said of event organizer and friend Heidi Tucker.

The event will include activities such as a cornhole tournament, bounce house, face painting and a silent auction. Only the first 10 teams will be accepted for the cornhole tournament at a cost of $20 per team.

The auction will have 30-40 various themed baskets, including such items as a Mary Kay basket, a reading basket with children's books and more.

The Deaton Family and Saturday Shoes will provide live music entertainment.

To register for the cornhole tournament or to donate an item for the silent auction, persons may contact Hannah Gilley at 720-5984 or hannahegilley@hotmail.com.

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  • I love you girls! It will be a great time, can't wait. I pray for you every night.

    -- Posted by mlooper on Thu, Oct 6, 2011, at 3:15 PM
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