Brotherly Love: Young Cancer Survivor Sells Her Book To Fund Cure
By Ukee Washington
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Five and a half years ago, Eyewitness News introduced you to an 11-year-old girl who wrote a children's book about her fight with cancer. Now that young author is a high school junior, and she's selling the book to raise money for children like her.
Thousands of children have heard her story thanks to two teachers who helped her dream come true.
We met Deana Vega in 2010, finishing artwork for her book about her struggle with cancer. Back then, teacher and illustrator Meloni Kinckner said, "I don't know if she realizes how many people it's going to touch."
When Deana was 9, she was diagnosed with leukemia. After a year of treatment, she went into remission.
Deana dreamed of writing a book. So Deana, Kinckner and teacher Judy Willner wrote a children's book about Deana being followed by the sun.
Deana explained, "The sun, when I'm sick, it's sad, and then when I'm starting to get better, the sun starts to get a bigger smile."
Today, Deana is 17. "Those doctors are really something, obviously, because you know, I'm here!" she said.
Deana is still in remission. She sold more than a thousand copies of her book, "How My Sun Got Its Smile."
"We had six or seven months of a lot of great sales and book signings going on," Willner said.
Now Judy and Deana are donating most of the book sale proceeds to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Deana is competing among nine other students to raise the most money.
Ellen Rubesin, executive director of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Eastern Pennsylvania, explained, "Each dollar counts as a vote, so the person with the most votes is named student of the year."
A new Kindle version of the book is on Amazon for five dollars. Judy is encouraging people to download it Thursday, February 4, on World Cancer Day. She calls it Deana Day.
"So I would love to say 100,000 people are going to buy this book. I like to dream!" Judy said.
Deana wants to become a social worker for children in cancer wards. Even better would be no cancer wards at all.
"I hope they can find a cure," Deana said. "Really."
From now until February 27, eighty percent of book sale proceeds will go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Eastern Pennsylvania.
You can purchase the book "How My Sun Got Its Smile" by Judy Willner and Deana Vega on Amazon, in either paperback or Kindle form, by clicking here.
You can also order it through AuthorHouse.com by clicking here.
