by Dave DeMars
news@thenewsleaders.com
Myelodysplastic Syndrome is a bone-marrow disorder in which the bone marrow does not produce enough healthy blood cells. It primarily affects older people, but not always. Probably one of the most recognizable persons affected by the disease was television broadcaster Robin Roberts of “Good Morning America.” But knowing these facts would have been little comfort to Tanner Fuls or his mother and father, Cindy and John Fuls.
Cindy Fuls will never forget the summer of 2010. That was the time when she and husband John learned their son, Tanner, had MDS.
“Tanner was a very athletic, red-headed, blue eyed, smiley young boy,” Cindy said. “He was very active the summer of 2010 – involved in hockey, his favorite sport, then baseball. He did all that stuff that summer. We had noticed some bruises on his body throughout the summer, but we just figured he was being his athletic self.”
He was at the family cabin one weekend in the summer of 2010 when he bumped his arm. That was when he noticed a really terrible-looking bruise formed almost immediately from that bump. He came down to the lake to show his parents the bruise, and they knew it was more than just a simple bruise that 11-year-old boys often get.
Immediately after that weekend, they took Tanner to St. Cloud Medical Group and were told the bruise was certainly something for concern. The Medical Group sent the Fulses to Children’s Hospital in the Twin Cities, and they performed a full battery of tests. Children’s Hospital surmised it was one of three things: a post-viral infection, a pre-leukemia condition or Myelodysplastic Syndrome. For three weeks, during which Tanner had his blood platelets collected and analyzed, the family prayed and hoped everything would turn out for the best.
After three weeks and much analysis, Children’s Hospital called and said Tanner had MDS.
“It’s a form of pre-leukemia, and we learned he would have to undergo a bone-marrow transplant,” Cindy said. “We didn’t know how long he had had it. He could have had it for six months or for a year. We just don’t know.”
Cindy said looking back, there were some signs early in that summer, but they were subtle. Things like not being quite able to finish his shift on the hockey line. They noticed his endurance wasn’t quite what it normally had been.
By the first week in September and throughout the month, Tanner was receiving chemotherapy treatment in preparation for the bone-marrow transplant. He rested for another four weeks until near the end of October and then entered the hospital at the University of Minnesota Oct. 28 for the bone-marrow transplant, Cindy said.
“He had the bone-marrow transplant on Nov. 8 and was doing fine,” Cindy said, “but then he developed an infection and ended up going into ICU and being intubated at that time. On Nov. 27, he lost his battle that night.”
“From July through November, it was a four-month journey,” John Fuls said.
The family survived thanks to the support they provided to one another and the support they received from their church and their friends and family, Cindy said. The community really helped, she said. Friends from church rallied round and collectively helped them through that time of grief.
“They got us to where we are today,” Cindy said.
Tanner’s younger sister, Maddie, (she was 8 when Tanner died) shared her insights into how his death affected her.
“I learned we had to stick together and to be positive toward one another,” Maddie said.
The pain of loss is not so raw today as it once was, Cindy noted.
“I remember someone a year after saying that ‘with time it gets easier,’ and I just remember at two and three years thinking it doesn’t get better, but I can honestly say at this point, it does get better,” Cindy said.
The idea for Tanner’s Team Foundation was an outgrowth of Tanner’s participation in all kinds of teams and sports.
“We always had Tanner’s team when Tanner was in the hospital,” John said, “so our bracelets and everything all said ‘Tanner’s Team’ on them. So when Tanner passed away, Cindy and I decided we needed something to do because the community was so good to us, the people in Central Minnesota were so good to us, that we needed to find a way we could give back and at the same time keep Tanner’s legacy alive.”
In June of 2011, John and Cindy started the foundation named after Tanner, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with the objective of helping other families in central Minnesota that have children with life-threatening illnesses, not just cancer, but any life-threatening illnesses. They do this through financial grants or gifts that can be used to cover housing, transportation and household expenses, or nearly any other kinds of expenses incurred by a family during their child’s care and treatment for a life-threatening disease.
John explained a doctor from the bone-marrow transplant team serves as the medical officer on the foundation staff who reviews each application to determine eligibility. Applications can be obtained from social workers, the hospital or clinics.
When an application is made, it’s reviewed to determine if applicants meet the two criteria: they must live in one of the 38 counties served by the foundation, and the child must have a life-threatening illness. This year the foundation will have made grants totaling $39,000 to families in need.
Funds are raised in a number of ways for the foundation. The biggest fundraiser is a 5K run held in June of each year. In March, right around the time of Tanner’s birthday, a spaghetti dinner has been held at Rollie Rednecks & Longnecks Honky-Tonk Bar in rural Sauk Rapids. Last summer they had a charity golf tournament to raise funds sponsored by Northwestern Mutual who donated proceeds, $30,000, to Tanner’s Team Foundation. Donations from private individuals and community service organizations such as the Lions, Rotary, the Elks and others also help to fund the foundation.
The foundation has been in existence for five years now.
“In March of this year, we helped our hundredth family, and in October of 2016, we went over the $100,000 mark of grants paid out to families,” John said. “Grants now average about $1,000 per family.”
Things are going well for the foundation this year, John said. Milestones have been reached, and families are being helped. Organizations and groups now reach out to the foundation more because the mission is becoming more well known.
“As long as kids are still getting sick,we want to be there to help them,” John said.
To learn more about the Tanner’s Team Foundation and how you can help out, visit www.tannersteam.org.
Tanner Fuls spent a good part of July 18, 2010, in the lake having fun and doing what 11-year-old boys love to do on hot summer days. Four months later, Tanner was the victim of a disease called Myelodysplastic Syndrome. In his memory, his parents John and Cindy Fuls created a foundation to help the families of other children who suffer from life-threatening illnesses.
Pictured left to right are parents Cindy and John Fuls and their daughter Maddie. In memory of Tanner, Cindy and John created the Tanner’s Team Foundation to help the families of children stricken with life-threatening illnesses.
