When their young daughter Tinlee was diagnosed with cancer, Tony and Taylor Kimbrough of Mokena, IL were instantly thrust into an overwhelming world of nurses, doctors and medical clinics. The couple immediately began juggling their jobs—Taylor is a Speech Language Pathologist and Tony a Security Engineer—with the constant demands of caring for a childhood cancer patient. Throughout Tinlee’s subsequent treatments at Ronald McDonald Children’s Hospital in Maywood, IL, the Kimbrough family came to recognize and appreciate the positive effects whenever Tinlee selected a toy from the Treasure Chest. When Treasure Chest Foundation CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel recently conducted an interview with Taylor, she learned that this brave mom had been a high school classmate of her son Martin, a former Foundation employee and himself a childhood cancer survivor. She also came away impressed with the courage shown by the Kimbroughs and all families battling cancer.

POTCF: Can you tell me about the time when Tinlee was diagnosed?

Taylor: Our daughter, who is now four, was just two-and-a-half years old at the time of her diagnosis. She was complaining of leg pain for a couple of days and we took her in for an X-ray which indicated an issue in her bone marrow. She was taken for blood work and admitted to the hospital immediately following the results. She spent the next week inpatient at Loyola University Medical Center and received a diagnosis of B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. She quickly received a platelet transfusion, surgery for a central line, a lumbar puncture and chemotherapy. All of this happened within a week of her first symptoms.

Initially we were completely devastated and also experienced a lot of shock. We felt that it couldn’t possibly be happening to us. Our younger daughter Teagan was only five weeks old at the time. We were extremely overwhelmed. After a very difficult first month, we started to really research ways to improve Tinlee’s health. It is a full-time job to manage her diet, side effects, treatment plan, medication, and to communicate with doctors/therapists/organizations/insurance. Some days we are completely mentally exhausted. We have learned to not live our lives in fear, although it is very difficult. We take each day as it comes and try not to stress about the future.

POTCF: What type of treatment did Tinlee go through?

Taylor: During the first eight months, she received IV chemotherapy almost weekly, over 10 spinal taps, oral medication, and blood and platelet transfusions. It was extremely rough. She lost her ability to walk for six weeks. She experienced so many aches and pains and also lost all of her hair the week of her third birthday. She was pretty unfazed with losing her hair and it was more difficult on us as parents. Other than the hospital, we spent all of our time at home in isolation. We would allow visitors to our house, but it was rare for us to go anywhere. We missed all the birthday parties. Tinlee’s immune system was down to zero, so we couldn’t risk any germ exposure.

Currently she is in a stage called “maintenance” and it involves daily oral chemo, steroids, trips to the clinic every four weeks, and spinal taps every 12 weeks. She’ll finish her treatments completely in April 2021. She has had a long journey. This is not something any toddler should have to go through. Luckily, everything has gone pretty smoothly overall. She has her bad days of not feeling well, but most days she acts like a playful toddler, and for that we are grateful.

POTCF: What is the worst part of Tinlee’s treatment?

Taylor: Seeing her in pain, forcing her to take medicine, the constant worry.

POTCF: What is the best part, if there is a good part, of the clinic/hospital?

Taylor: The best part of the clinic and the hospital is seeing the friendly nurses and doctors who are now basically our family. The best part for Tinlee is being able to choose a toy from the Treasure Chest and the fun things she can do there.

POTCF: Can you tell me about the Treasure Chest at the hospital?

Taylor: We have accessed the Treasure Chest toys while we were inpatient and at the oncology clinic. During inpatient stays, the toys were extremely helpful to pass the time while we were confined to our hospital room. Our child-life specialist would also fill Tinlee’s bed with toys from the Treasure Chest before we got there to make her admission less scary. During our clinic visits, getting her port accessed and blood drawn is the most difficult part for Tinlee, but she knows as soon as she is done she gets to pick a toy from the Treasure Chest. This makes her worries go away immediately!

POTCF: Did knowing Tinlee would receive a toy or gift card help the hospital/clinic experience?

Taylor: Definitely! We talk about it when we are on our way to the clinic. She is never very excited about going to the clinic, but we distract her by talking about the toys that may be in the Treasure Chest.

POTCF: How did Tinlee’s siblings handle her cancer diagnosis and the aftermath?

Taylor: Her older brother Tyler (age 12) has been supportive, but he also gets jealous of all the attention Tinlee gets. Her younger sister Teagan was only five weeks old at diagnosis, so she honestly doesn’t know any differently!

POTCF: Someone told me (Colleen) that my son’s cancer treatment would change me for the better. Has this changed you in any way?

Taylor: Yes it has. We have a newfound appreciation of health, family and relationships. It has changed us 100%.

POTCF: What would you say to a family who just learned their son or daughter had been diagnosed with cancer?

Taylor: Take it one day at a time, literally. It is SO difficult, but distract yourself when you start to worry about the future.

POTCF: Do you have any comments for the Treasure Chest Foundation’s contributors? Please elaborate on the importance of their continued contributions.

Taylor: From a family who has received numerous toys from the Treasure Chest Foundation, we cannot say thank you enough. Your contributions have made it possible for Tinlee to smile through some very difficult times.

POTCF: Please share any final comments about the Treasure Chest Foundation, perhaps a personal story.

Taylor: While we were inpatient during Tinlee’s initial diagnosis, some friends gathered toys from the Treasure Chest Foundation and put them on display at our house. When we came home for the first time, Tinlee saw a large Sully doll from Monsters Inc. She was so overjoyed when she saw it. I remember this moment clearly because we were so grateful/nervous to be home, but seeing Tinlee happy put our minds more at ease.