Girl, 3, Dies In Mother's Arms: 'I Just Want Her To Wake Up'

RIVERHEAD, NY — A little girl, 3, who captured hearts with her courage and "sassy and fierce" spirit died in her mother's arms Wednesday after a battle with inoperable brain cancer.

Mia Grace Elizabeth Moore's broken-hearted mother sent a message on Facebook to the many who loved her daughter, sharing the unthinkable news of her loss.

"I've just been sitting here holding her for the past few hours, I guess because I don't want to let her go," Michelle Moore said. "It doesn't feel real. I'm just holding her in my arms and it feels like she's just sleeping. I just want her to wake up."

Mia was diagnosed in January, 2019 with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, and the months since have brought all who love her together as they rallied to support the child's fierce battle for life.

According to Mia's aunt Tina Moore, Michelle moved from her hometown of Riverhead a few years ago to Newport News, VA. But although there were miles between her new home and the community where her roots run deep, love knows no geographic boundaries, and when friends and loved ones heard of her Mia's battle, they came together to make a difference, holding fundraisers and sending prayers.

"We are devastated, but Mia is free, and that brings some comfort. Please keep everyone in your thoughts and prayers," Tina wrote on Facebook Wednesday.

Michelle sent a message on the "Miracles for Mia Grace" Facebook page, telling the many who'd fought for her daughter that she was gone.

"It's a little after eight o'clock and I've been here for a little while, just holding my sweet girl in my arms," she said.

Mia, she said, took a sudden turn for the worse Wednesday; she had a buildup of fluid in the brain and suffered a terrifying seizure. "Right then and there, I knew she wasn't going to make it. She passed away in my arms," she said.

Mia, Michelle said, was not in pain during her last moments. "Everything happened so fast," she said.

After she got her daughter's CT scan results, her breathing became "choppy" and Mia was given oxygen.

"They brought her upstairs to a room so she wouldn't pass away downstairs in the emergency room, and so we could be comfortable," she said.

As hospital staff transferred Mia from the gurney to a bed, Michelle said she ran to the rest room.

"Thank goodness I didn't stay in the bathroom to have a good cry, because when I came back into the room, I looked at her, and her lips were turning blue. I asked her doctor, 'She's dying right now?' And she nodded yes," she said.

Michelle lay next to her baby girl in the bed. "I held her so that she knew I was there," she said.

Her son, Brendyn, 11, texted as she sat by her daughter, asking if Mia was okay, she said.

"I told him earlier that she may not survive this. That she may not come home," she said.

Michelle thanked the many who've rallied to try and save her girl. No plans have been made yet for services, she said.

"I just need to try to get through my days because it still does not feel real that my baby is not here anymore," she said. "I'm okay," Michelle said. "I have to be okay, because I need to be there for my son. Thank you for all the love and support. The one thing my little angel will know forever is that she was very, very loved."

DIPG, Tina explained is an aggressive, inoperable cancer that targets the brain stem.

"We are all devastated, but we never give up hope because this family is strong and that strength has been inherited by Mia Grace," she said last year.

Mia had completed radiation — currently the only actual treatment for DIPG at her age— and that helped to shrink the tumor, which had remained stable for some time. She also participated in a T-cell therapy trial in Washington, DC, which used a type of immune system cell from the patient with the hope that it would kill the cancer cells.

Funds are still needed to help with expenses, Tina said; Michelle is a single mother who has spent months by her daughter's side.

"It is with great sorrow that I inform that Mia Grace Elizabeth Moore has gained her wings yesterday evening in her loving mother's arms," the GoFundMe page, "Fighting for Mia," said.

"Mia was the definition of a warrior and her spirit and the impact she left on the hearts of many will never fade. It is still so unbelievable to be posting this update. As you can imagine, Mia's mother and brother are in unimaginable pain right now. Please continue to keep them and all who loved Mia in your thoughts and prayers," Ashley Highsmith-Johnson, who created the page, said.

May is brain tumor/ cancer awareness month, Highsmith-Johnson added. "Pediatric cancers are the most underfunded forms of cancer. Please continue to spread awareness of this monster in the hopes of finding a cure. No parent should have to feel this pain. . .Sleep peacefully beautiful Mia. We will love you always."

Describing Mia last year, Tina said: "She is a smart, beautiful, strong little girl. I think two words describe her perfectly: sassy and fierce."

On Thursday, Tina said Mia's family was in shock. "DIPG is an unpredictable monster. It needs more awareness. I just wish there was a cure."

And to the many who lifted Mia up with prayers, she said: "We appreciate the love and support everyone has shown from Day 1. We are so grateful."