Danielle and Jacob Kalu celebrate their son, Amari, as he reached the end of his cancer treatments in April.Brenda Muntean and Amari Kalu met through the Bella Muntean-Angel Heart of Hope ministry.

Nonprofit to hold annual fundraiser

Julie Holcombe's picture
Celebrating a legacy
By: 
Julie Holcombe

Bella Muntean-Angel Heart of Hope is celebrating this weekend. Celebrating recovery. Celebrating awareness. And celebrating the legacy that the ministry continues to have through Bella’s friends and followers.

The nonprofit will hold its annual “Celebration” fundraiser March 11-13 virtually through www.angelheartofhope.org/celebration.

“This is our only major annual fundraiser that will directly impact children who have cancer or a life-threatening illness through our gifts program plus assist their families through our financial assistance program,” said Brenda Muntean, Bella’s mother and President of Angel Heart of Hope.

This year’s guest speaker has experienced both the challenges of illness as well as the support of the ministry. Danielle Kalu’s son, Amari, was one of the first recipients of the ministry’s gifts after he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia 12 days before his 3rd birthday in March 2018.

“Brenda Muntean reached out to me directly to let me know they would be adding Amari to their prayer list and coordinated the delivery of one of their pillow cases full of gifts for Amari during one of his outpatient clinic treatments,” Kalu said. “I have stayed in touch with Brenda since then and continue to do what I can to bring awareness to their ministry and childhood cancers.”

Amari’s illness began simply with a pain in his legs that would not go away. After a month of pediatrician and ER visits, the pain continued, keeping the toddler awake at night and eventually preventing him from putting weight on them. Eventually, a blood test confirmed the cancer diagnosis, and Amari began treatment at Greenville Memorial Hospital.

“After three long years of spinal taps, infusions, at home chemo and steroids, he rang the bell on April 12, 2021, symbolizing the end of his treatment,” Kalu said.

“Angel Heart of Hope came alongside our family and hung in there with us through all of Amari’s treatments. They would deliver gifts for him, send gift cards for meals and even made a mortgage payment for us during treatment,” she said. “Along with the physical support, their constant prayers and texts and phone calls to check in on us have been so appreciated. Knowing that someone else understands what you are going through and having them reach out, especially when others don’t often know what to do in the situation, meant the world to us.”

For the “Celebration,” Kalu wants to emphasize awareness of the journey.

“I want to share Amari’s story which involved three-plus years of treatment for childhood leukemia and some of the trials and blessings in that. I want to share how Bella Muntean-Angel Heart of Hope ministered to myself, Amari, and our family through those years and even after,” she said. “I hope people’s eyes and hearts will be opened to the needs right here in our community for families fighting the fight against childhood cancer.”

She said that staying in touch with those families through sharing meals, donating groceries, or just being there to talk or share a cup of coffee is important during the process.

“I know the easy thing to do is send your regards and then pull back because it’s scary, but imagine being the person in that situation. It’s even more scary for them, and support is the biggest thing that they need during this time,” Kalu said. “Knowing that they are not alone and that someone cares is so important when you are in the depths of a cancer diagnosis and the treatments involved in it.”

Never forgotten

“At the initial onset of the pandemic we realized how quickly we had to adjust our event so that we could still raise funds for children with life threatening illnesses because their needs didn’t stop. Cancer waits for nobody,” Muntean said. “Not only has the trend of virtual events increased, but the response and support we received was far-reaching. Therefore, we decided to continue the event virtual for everyone, no matter where they live, to be able to view it at their convenience and be blessed by it.

“You never know how the Holy Spirit is going to move and touch people’s hearts. It is titled a ‘Celebration’ because we commemorate Bella’s life, her creation of this ministry from a hospital bed during her cancer journey, and the many ways that God has blessed us through it all and serving others. We give God all the glory.”

During her life, Bella shared her faith and her love for American Girl dolls through her Instagram account thenookdolls. Since Bella’s death in 2018, her followers continue to reach out to Brenda and share stories of how the teenager and her legacy has impacted them.

“One of Bella’s followers on Instagram asked me if she could write an article about our ministry (https://gwchronicle.com/2022/01/31/how-a-young-girls-journey-with-cancer...). I was surprised and excitedly connected her with a couple of the families that we had served. Even though Hannah lives in another state, and we have never met, she has stayed in touch since Bella’s passing. Her love and support mean so much to me and our ministry,” Brenda said.

Bella’s reach manifests itself in a variety of ways and myriad places.

“It is amazing to me how Bella’s faith continues to be such an inspiration to so many. Her Instagram followers still express their love for her whether it is through their doll posts, wearing yellow, doing random acts of kindness, sending me gifts for the children, raising awareness about childhood cancer in their communities, or sharing with others and writing about her story. Several of her friends in other countries still reach out to me,” Muntean said.

“It is so humbling when Bella’s friends reach out to me in these various ways assuring me that she is never forgotten and always loved. I realize how truly blessed I am. Thanks be to God for the way that He used Bella’s suffering to ignite faith, change lives, and create this ministry.”

Angel Heart of Hope’s mission is to give hope to children with life-threatening illnesses through gifts of love. Donations and sponsorships are available throughout the year. For more information, visit angelheartofhope.org or contact brenda@angelheartofhope.org.

jholcombe@greercitizen.com | 877-2076

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