9th annual benefit in honor of Monica Senese a fundraiser for 'Super' Wes Ryan

The ninth annual Benefit in Honor of Monica Senese will take place from 6 until 11 p.m. on Friday, July 26, at Lewiston No. 2 Volunteer Fire Co., 1705 Saunders Settlement Road. The $20 admission includes food, drinks and a donation. Proceeds from this year's event will benefit "Super" Wes Ryan.

Wes was born on April 23 with a condition called congenital diaphragmatic hernia. This hernia is a hole in the diaphragm, which allows some organs in the abdomen to move up into the chest cavity, affecting the heart and the lungs.

Kylee and Joel Ryan, Wes's parents, were made aware of this during a routine ultrasound. They were told that, to ensure the best medical attention for Wes, they needed to go to Philadelphia to be under the care of the specialists at Philadelphia's Children's Hospital.

Wes has been through a lot since his birth. There have been good days and bad. His doctors have performed multiple surgeries to move his organs from his chest cavity to his abdominal cavity and repair the hole in his diaphragm. He has been removed from the Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation machine that helped his heart and lungs grow stronger. He is currently on a general ventilator.

He fights through his bad days and continues to get stronger, which is why his family calls him "Super Wes."

Ryan family faces a huge financial burden. They're not even thinking about that now, but friends and family seek to help them with this obstacle.

For more information, contact Gerry and Rose Senese at 716-297-5029 or [email protected]; or Jill Birmingham at 716-713-9062 or [email protected].

Checks should be made payable to the Monica Senese Memorial Fund, care of Liz Bernardone, 7268 Katie Drive, North Tonawanda, NY 14120.

Kylee and Joel continue to be strong. They are so thankful for all the prayers and support they have received from friends, family and people they have never even met.

Follow the "Wes Ryan CDH story" on Facebook for more up to date information.

Monica Senese, a 1995 graduate of Niagara Wheatfield, died suddenly on Sept. 2, 2000. In 2005, Monica's friends and family came together to honor her memory by giving another person a chance to continue celebrating life as Monica did for 23 years. For the past eight years, they have been able to help families in need through the support of extremely generous people like you.