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The spirit of giving for the holidays was on display among team members at Ghada Have It! Mediterranean Home Cooking in Niagara Falls.
The staff of the restaurant, located at 2177 Military Road, recently learned of the plight of Arlen. This special, 7-year-old student at Alexander Hamilton Elementary School in Tonawanda is full of life and loves art, gymnastics and music.
According to her family, Arlen also suffers from a rare genetic disease. She has undergone many rounds of chemotherapy and received a bone marrow transplant last year. Following a series of unfortunate medical complications since the transplant, Arlen had to have both of her feet amputated on Dec. 4.
Over past weeks, the Ghada Have It! staff hosted a gift drive at the restaurant to help brighten the holidays for Arlen and her family.
“When we found out of Arlen's situation and the emotional, physical, mental and financial toll this has had on the whole family, we wanted to spread some much-needed holiday cheer,” a press release noted. “We've been collecting donations all month, and we will be delivering the gifts to Arlen and her family.”
As of this writing, Arlen, her parents, Maggie and Drew, and her two siblings, Brantley, 9, and Arabelle, 3, were set to receive their gifts from Santa – who planned to visit on his parade float in true holiday fashion. School and community members were to join with local law enforcement officials to lead a parade from Alexander Hamilton Elementary to Arlen’s home.
Arlen is shown in a recent photo with her parents and family members.
Kudos to the staff of Ghada Have It! who helped make the family’s holidays a memorable experience. (Submitted photo)
1859 Whitehaven Road, Grand Island, NY 14072
Phone: 716-773-7676
Fax: 716-773-7190
