Survivor's family sets its sights on helping others
By Becky Barclay
Published in News on September 18, 2014 1:46 PM
News-Argus/BECKY BARCLAY
Piper Wilhide, left, and her sister, Conleigh, hold a poster of Piper as poster child for the Children's Miracle Network. Two-year-old Piper is also the reason for the second annual Piper's Promise walk/run event to be held this weekend in Goldsboro.
A 4-week-old's diagnosis of cancer has led to an ongoing effort to help other children with life-threatening diseases.
The second annual Piper's Promise, a walk/run fundraiser in honor of Piper Wilhide, will be held Saturday at Walnut Creek. It grew out of the Wilhide family's experience with their daughter's cancer fight.
The Wilhides were told in 2012 that their daughter had Stage 3 intermediate risk neuroblastoma -- a cancerous tumor that was lodged between her spine and heart.
The month-old little girl had four rounds of chemotherapy, then two major surgeries to remove the tumor, then two more rounds of chemo.
By spring of 2013, Piper was in remission.
"Today, she's still in remission and we go every two months to the clinic in Greenville," said mom Haleigh. "They do full body scans every six months."
But Piper can do anything any other 2-year-old can do.
"She's thriving," Haleigh said. "She's in day care. A lot of people wouldn't even know she's sick. She's doing great."
The Wilhides were so overwhelmed by everyone who reached out to help during Piper's cancer treatment that they decided they wanted to pay it forward. So they organized Piper's Promise to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House and Riley's Army in Greenville, both of which gave them much needed support and help during Piper's treatment.
"My prayer had been that if God healed my baby, I would tell her story and help others for the rest of my life," Haleigh said. "We didn't really know how Piper's Promise was going to go, but it was a huge success. We raised a total of $27,500. It definitely snowballed. It was great."
The goal for this year's event, which will be held Saturday at Walnut Creek's municipal building, is $40,000.
There's still time to become a sponsor or register for the fundraiser. Anyone wanting to participate can go online to www.ecrr.us and click on events, then click on Piper's Promise.
The opening ceremony will be from 7:15 to 7:45 a.m. Taking part will be Miss North Carolina Beth Stovall and Miss Goldsboro Emily Tucker.
In addition to the 5K and mile walk, this year there will also be a half 5K. The half 5K will start at 8 a.m., the 5k at 8:15 a.m. and the run at 9:15.
Entry fees are $15 for the walk, $35 for the 5K and $60 for the half 5K. Everyone gets a runner's bag filled with goodies and is entered in drawings for Wyndham getaways at Myrtle Beach and Charleston, S.C., and the mountains, jewelry and gift cards to local restaurants.
An added honor for Piper this year was being chosen as the 2014 poster child for the Children's Miracle Network back in January. She was nominated by her oncologist.
"We felt honored and excited," Haleigh said. "Children's Miracle Network is about miracles and Piper is literally exactly that. Children's Miracle Network raises money all year so Piper was put on the fliers, which are put up all over town when businesses do their drives."
The family has already gone to several Children's Miracle Network events this year.
"It's nice to give our story, and people also like to see the face with the name," Haleigh said.
Haleigh said Piper's experience with cancer has changed the whole family.
"Everything has changed from just the way we view life," she said. "We lived in this bubble and thought everything was fine, then boom, we got knocked down. But that's life.
"It made us kind of slow down. It has made us more thankful and more grateful for even the smallest of things."