When Bobby’s senior class crowned him Prom King in 2014, it was a high point in a difficult journey that had started two years before.

He began feeling ill in the summer of 2012, but his mother Kelly assumed it was an infection from the wisdom teeth he’d had removed a few weeks prior.

Instead, they received the unexpected and devastating news that Bobby had acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

The first 28 days were crucial. Bobby began an aggressive treatment plan with a timeline of three and a half years, and doctors assessed his risk of relapse. The conclusion was high risk.

From the start, Kelly and Bobby had a good rapport with the doctors and nurses at Mass General in Boston and wanted to continue treatment there. But the hospital was a two hour trip from their home, and Kelly had lost both part-time jobs within weeks of Bobby’s diagnosis. Then, just six months later, they endured another blow when Bobby’s father passed away.

A social worker at the hospital introduced them to Compass to Care, and for two years they have helped Kelly and Bobby travel to treatment every other week without worrying about the costs of getting there.

The trips have since slowed to every four weeks. While the cancer has weakened his immune system, Bobby has continually grown stronger and his overall prognosis looks good.

And the end is in sight. Both Bobby and Kelly are anticipating a fresh start in November when his treatment ends. As soon as doctors say he’s in the clear, Bobby’s plans for the future can begin in earnest.