(Atlanta, GA) When Atlanta's 4-year-old Austin Herre was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, his generous heart inspired his parents to start Austin's Army, dedicated to helping other families who are going through the childhood cancer battle.
Rather hear about Austin's journey?
What started as a way to buy toys for children battling cancer who couldn't be home for Christmas quickly changed. Now, some of the money raised goes to help families struggling after their children's cancer diagnosis.
"Austin's Army has become way bigger than we anticipated. This year, we were able to raise a little over $5000 to bring toys to the Aflac, which is where he was diagnosed, to their floor. We asked the hospital staff, how else can we make an impact? They had actually started a new initiative this year that they are providing gift cards to families that are not inpatient, but are at home, but they're struggling financially because of the havoc that cancer wreaks on families."
Chelsea and her family were able to donate several thousand dollars raised through Austin's Army to help fund that initiative.
"He'll go to the store and say, 'Mommy, I think they'd like that, I would like it .'
He's learning to give back, even after so much has been taken away from him," Chelsea Herre shared.
Chelsea credits her family's faith in getting them through saying, "I've always believed in God."
"Austin's the sweetest little boy and I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why this was given to him. But as we got further along in the process, and I realized that God knew he could handle it...knew he could touch lives." Chelsea said.
"He's too young to understand that God's working within Him, but I know He is."
