She is a very active young lady who walks a beam, performs on bars, does a split and back flips, and has a floor routine like no other. But it hasn’t always been this way.

While other six year olds were running and playing on the play ground, riding bikes and catching fire flies, little Abbie was fighting the toughest battle ever. In March of 2007, at the age of six and a half, she was diagnosed with leukemia. Her treatments began at Barbara Bush Hospital followed by treatment at Maine Children’s Cancer program in Scarborough, where her blood was tested and she began chemo treatments.

Because her cancer was not in remission after the initial 28-day induction therapy, Abbie needed more. Fourteen months of treatment followed.

Her last day of treatment was July 4, 2009.

Abbie’s journey brought her already close knit family even closer. They fought back. Putting every ounce of their energy into getting this little girl healthy and helping Abbie see there was a light at the end of the tunnel. Hope wasn’t just a word to them it was a positive feeling and a weapon to fight this terrible disease.

In the spring of 2008, Abbie’s family formed a Relay For Life team called Abbie’s Avengers. Their entire family participates and have a huge impact on the River Valley Relay. They run Kids Corner at the event, a very popular spot for young people to gather and have fun.

Through the years, they have done great fundraisers, calendar draws, purple potty challenges, food sales, lap beads at the event and much more.

This year’s fundraisers will be a bake sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday in the Marden’s parking lot, a bottle drive (details to follow) on May 3, a yard sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 24 at 711 Auburn Rd., and a car wash on June 1 at the Mexico Fire Department.