Single Mother Battling Stage 4 Breast Cancer Needs Your Help

Tracy Bucciarelli is a mother, a registered nurse, a room parent at Highlands Elementary School in La Grange and an Indian Head Park resident.

She’s also fighting stage 4 breast cancer.

Bucciarelli received the diagnosis in June 2012. Her doctor said the normal survival rate for women with stage 4 breast cancer is two to three years. She’ll be celebrating three years of survival next month.

The community has rallied together to host a fundraiser from 7 to 11 p.m. May 29 at Via Bella in Countryside to benefit Bucciarelli and her 9-year-old son, Jason, since Bucciarelli’s medications prevent her from continuing her dream job as a nurse in the NICU unit at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

The fundraiser will be a family event with activities for children and adults, according to the Team Tracy fundraiser page. There will be a buffet dinner, cash bar, music, karaoke, silent, raffle, bake sale and more.

Tickets are $30 for adults in advance, $35 at the door, $10 for children age 4-12, and free for kids under 4.

Lisa Patera said they’ve sold about 60 tickets so far, and they’ve gathered eight sponsors.

All proceeds from this fundraiser will go to the “Tracy Bucciarelli Fundraising Trust,” which will help Tracy with her medical and housing expenses.

“It remains perplexing to understand why a person like Tracy, who has given her entire life to the nurture and care of others, must herself, undergo so much pain and hardship,” a friend wrote on the fundraiser page. “This is why we, as a community, must come together and give this little family our wholehearted support!”

Friends and supporters have raised more than $10,000 for Bucciarelli and her son 9-year-old son, Jason, through an online campaign that continues to accept donations for the fundraising trust.

Businesses interested in sponsoring the fundraiser can find a sponsorship information form online.

Click here to read more about Team Tracy.
Photos courtesy of Team Tracy.

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