After 11 months of living at CHEO undergoing treatments for a brain tumor, Ethan Tucker’s great-aunt Kate Veinotte organized a fundraiser to help his family cover cost after Ethan’s parents gave up their jobs to care for him and their other children. Pictured from the left: Sam Laurin, Norene Hyatt-Gervais, co-owner of Stone Crop Acres Winery, Kate and Scott Veinotte.    Glover photo

Kory Glover
Record Staff

MORRISBURG – This past January, the Tucker family’s eldest son Ethan Tucker collapsed in their home and was rushed directly to CHEO, where they learned the worst news.

Tucker was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor.

Since then, he has endured nothing but a difficult uphill battle of treatments, infections and complications. Both Tucker’s parents have given up on their jobs to take care of their son, and funds have been a little tight unfortunately.

Fortunately, Tucker’s great-aunt Kate Veinotte organized a fundraiser Sat., Dec. 15 at Stone Crop Acres Winery to help the family through their difficult troubles just in time for Christmas.

“My great-nephew Ethan has been in the hospital at CHEO for the past 11 months and he’s unfortunately going to be spending the holiday season at CHEO this year,” said Veinotte. “His parents also have three other kids at home and they have both given up on their jobs to take care of their children right now, so we’re just trying to help give them a Christmas and make things a little bit easier for them. He is currently not responding to his chemo but, for the last 11 months, been living at CHEO, so we’re just hoping for a Christmas miracle.”

Veinotte continued, “My husband and I have been working in music and theater for the past 25 years and this just seemed like an actual thing for us to do, leaning on the Christmas season.”

Veinotte said that she has received a lot of help from different people in the area including a friend who ran the choir involved in the show, the Winery’s Norene Hyatt-Gervais and Marc Gervais offered their location for the fundraiser and the community for their support in the event.

The fundraiser offered an assortment of entertainment throughout the night including a reading of Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, a 20 voice community choir and an auction.