AF family offers support in times of trouble

  • Published
  • By Karen Abeyasekere
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE MILDENHALL, England (USAFENS) --  From the moment you meet him, you just can’t help liking Zachary Moore. Whether it’s the way he looks at you with his huge blue-green eyes, or dazzles you with his cheeky grin, this young man certainly has the ladies wrapped around his little finger.

Watching him kicking his ball around with such eagerness and energy, it’s easy to think he’ll soon be following in David Beckham’s or Adam Vinatieri’s footsteps.

And he might well be –– but he has to overcome a serious illness before he gets there.

Zachary is 18 months old and has just been diagnosed as having acute lymphoblastic leukemia. When he’s kicking a ball around, it’s in the children’s oncology ward at Addenbrookes Hospital in Cambridge, England, where he’s been day and night for the last two weeks –– and will be for at least two more.

First Lt. Christopher Moore, 488th Intelligence Squadron, and his wife, Kimberly, found out about their son’s condition by sheer accident when they were planning on taking a short vacation to Rome.

Because he was recovering from croup (respiratory difficulty and a harsh cough from which children commonly suffer) and his first ear infection, Zachary’s parents made a routine appointment with their pediatrician, Dr. Tim Sullivan, 48th Medical Group at RAF Lakenheath, the day before their flight. Even though the ear infection was gone and Zachary was given the OK to fly, Kim happened to notice some small red dots on his arm.

Though the dots could have been caused by any number of things, Kim spoke with Dr. Sullivan, who thought it best to take some blood samples.

“Dr. Sullivan called us that evening and told us to cancel our vacation plans and to bring Zachary back into the lab the next morning for more blood tests and wait in pediatrics for the results,” said Lieutenant Moore. “Zachary’s white blood cell count was much higher than it should have been, and we were immediately referred to Addenbrookes.”

The Moores said they have received good support from around the base.

“The first thing we did was call the chaplain. We’re Catholic and have a pretty strong faith, so we managed to get hold of Father (Capt.) Chad Zelinski, and he was able to come down and say some prayers and perform an ‘anointing of the sick’ on Zachary before he had his first surgery,” said Lieutenant Moore. “Everyone, from my troops at work and our squadron’s spouses group, to our neighbors, has been so supportive. We’ve had people offering to clean our house, mow the lawn, pick up mail and chauffer family members to and from the airport –– anything you can think of, people have offered to do. It’s been wonderful not having to worry about little things like that when you’re caring for a sick child.”

The Moores said there are a lot of Web sites available on the illness, and they’ve talked to other families who’ve been through similar situations, such as former co-workers and friends from the chapel and their Bible study group. They said in the last couple of weeks they’ve had to learn a lot of information about this type of leukemia. Zachary’s hair will soon start to fall out, so to make him feel a little better, his dad recently gave him a “buzz cut” to match his own.

Adding to the stress of having a child recently diagnosed with leukemia, Kim is five months pregnant, and has to be extra careful managing her stress levels and taking care of her health.

“For me to cope, I have to be here with Zachary. My friends from Bible study, as well as our other friends, including people from the spouses group, have all come together to help us out, scheduling meals and coming to visit –– it’s been such a big help,” she said.

Before they found out about Zachary’s condition, Lieutenant Moore was getting ready to cross flow into public affairs –– the career field in which he served four years as an enlisted troop.

He said he’s had many supportive e-mails from folks in his new career field, concerning his PA assignment, and telling the family they will work with them to make sure Zachary gets the best possible care.

“I definitely don’t think we would have had the kind of help and support we’ve had if I’d been in the civilian sector, and we want to thank everyone for all the support we’ve been given,” Lieutenant Moore said.

Families in a similar situation can enroll in the Special Needs Identification Assignment Coordination Process, formerly the Exceptional Family Member Program, but should be referred by their provider, said Maj. Katie Lister, 48th Medical Operations Squadron Family Advocacy special needs coordinator.

“When Airmen with special needs family members leave, we make sure their new base can meet their medical needs. Even though there may be a medical hospital near the base to which they’re going, it may not all have the same facilities. We ask the base if they can provide the necessary medical treatment. If they can’t, we make sure the family doesn’t go there,” she said. “The purpose of the program is to prevent suffering and inadequate care, and to ensure the highest standard of care is provided.”

The type of leukemia that Zachary has is the most common for his age group, and has a 75 to 80 percent cure rate, said Dr. Sullivan, adding medical research of leukemia has advanced significantly in recent years, greatly improving chances of survival. “Zachary is a strong boy and the illness was caught at an early stage, so we have every reason to be optimistic.”

For more information on the SNIACP, visit www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil.