Who knew that playing a game with friends at school would change Sydney’s world forever.

In February of 2013, when Sydney was 13, she was playing with friends at school when a classmate accidentally kicked her in the knee. Sydney didn’t think anything of it. A week or so later she began limping and noticed a lot of fluid collecting in her knee. Her single mother, Qiana, took her to the hospital, where doctors diagnosed Sydney with Synovial Sarcoma.

Sydney went through six treatments of chemotherapy for three weeks, followed by six operations for a complete knee replacement. She thought she had conquered the beast. Sadly, she relapsed. Cancer had spread to her lungs. The doctors had to remove half of her lung.

Sydney is now traveling every day to Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago for chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The constant traveling became a burden. The Social Worker at the hospital referred her to Compass to Care.

Qiana said that “Not working right now puts a hole in my heart, with getting gasoline and parking my car in the hospital garage, everything adds up. I now have to spend $55.00 a week just to park my car in the hospital garage. I just greatly appreciate Compass to Care for taking care of all of our traveling expenses. Just knowing that I can safely take my daughter to the hospital, where they are continuing to keeping her alive, is truly a blessing.”