Stony Plain family who was supported during cancer diagnosis paying it forward

A Stony Plain woman is paying forward the generosity shown to her when her family was going through a difficult period.

In December 2020, Mackenzie Bilokraly's husband was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma.

The young couple had a one-year-old child and were both working full time when their future became uncertain.

Then a stranger reached out.

"[She] asked if she could host an auction in our name," Bilokraly recalled in a recent interview with CTV News Edmonton. "She raised quite a bit of money for our family, and it gave us the opportunity to just relax a little bit, focus on my husband getting better. We didn't have to stress about money or how we were going to pay bills."

Mackenzie Bilokraly, left, owner of kid's clothing company Be the Good in Stony Plain, began hosting auctions to benefit other members of the community after someone did the same for her family when her husband received a cancer diagnosis in 2020.

Since her husband has gotten better, Bilokraly has felt a "spark."

"Through the last few years, I've learned we have a lot of really amazing people in our community that want to do good things for people that they've never even met," she said. "It inspired me to do the same."

She began hosting auctions of her own. Through her kids' clothing company, Be the Good, Bilokraly solicits nominations and draws a benefactor at random.

So it is thanks to an unknown person that the Kaiser family in Spruce Grove is the latest recipient.

Bilokraly said, "Somebody in our community submitted them for a reason. They're very deserving."

MEET VIOLA

Viola and her twin brother Roderick were born Jan. 14.

Roderick and Viola Kaiser were born Jan. 14, 2022. Viola was diagnosed with Sandhoff disease a few months later.

Because of some concerns about Viola's development, her mother, Heather Kaiser, began reaching out to medical professionals. The mom and baby ended up in the office of a pediatrician, who agreed something could be wrong.

"He did the normal tests. He's lifting up her legs and they're falling down, and he's doing the eye tracking and she's not following. And he says, 'There's something off, but I'm not really sure what it is. We'll send her for blood work. If we don't find anything there, we'll send her to physio. And then if we still don't find anything out, we'll go with an MRI,'" Kaiser told CTV News Edmonton.

"It kind of freaked me out – an MRI?"

Two weeks later, Viola was diagnosed with Sandhoff disease, a lipid storage disorder which causes the deterioration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Most infants diagnosed with the disease die by the age of three, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

"It was the most devastating news that we ever received in our whole life. I knew that something was off with her, but didn't think this would be it at all," Kaiser said.

A short while later, she received a message not unlike the one Bilokraly had received two years earlier. But this time, it was Bilokraly delivering good news: Kaiser had been nominated and drawn to be the recipient of her next auction.

"It was a complete shock to us. But I was overjoyed, obviously," Kaiser told CTV News Edmonton.

"You realize how many amazing people there are out in the world that want to help you."

AUCTION FOR VIOLA

The auction for Viola begins Nov. 12.

Last year's auction raised more than $4,000 for a teenager who lost their arm to cancer.

With about $7,000 in donated products and services ready to go, Bilokraly hopes even more will be fundraised for the Kaisers, who plan to use the funds to offset either the cost of Heather staying home at the end of her maternity leave to look after Viola, or a clinical treatment in the U.S. if the family is accepted.

"The people who are donating, they've never met Viola… They're 'being the good' in our community," Bilokraly commented.

Viola Kaiser, from Spruce Grove, Alta., was diagnosed as an infant with Sandhoff disease. The rare disorder causes the deterioration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord.

"I'm really thankful for that because if you don't have support, it makes it really hard to go through times like this," Kaiser added, blinking tears away.

"I'm definitely humbled by all the people that have been reaching out and just asking how [Viola] is. So this is above and beyond."

The auction is run on Be the Good's Instagram page. Each day, items and services donated by local partners will be put up for bidding throughout the day.

Bilokraly said the value of the items ranges from $20 to $950.

With files from Galen McDougall and Joe Scarpelli