by James Coulter
A local boy who has been suffering up to 70 seizures per day will now be able to undergo a procedure to help alleviate his epilepsy. More than $20,000 was raised at the Nickels for Pickle bass tournament hosted at Camp Mack in Lake Wales.
More than 27 boats turned out to participate in the Nickels for Pickles Bass Tournament hosted on Sat. Apr. 27 in Camp Mack in Lake Wales. The fundraiser included a fishing tournament with a $1,500 first-place prize, as well as a cornhole tournament and several raffle drawings.
Proceeds from the event will go towards Dillinger and his family. This seven-year-old boy from Fort Meade has been diagnosed with frontal lobe epilepsy with secondary generalization. His ailment has required his family to visit the hospital in Orlando for testing and screening.
The proceeds will help cover an upcoming medical procedure in which holes will be bored into Dillinger’s skull to probe his brain and scan for the affected areas.
“We met our goal,” said Lauren Yearry, who organized the event with her husband Eddie. “They will still have more overhead than what we could cover with the $20,000 because their medical bills are piling up and the surgery will cost quite a bit.”
Lauren learned from one of the other organizers at the event that the bass tournament was one of the largest hosted recently at Camp Mack. The last tournament hosted drew in about 17 boats, she said.
“It was one of the most successful events he [the other organizer] has seen out there in Camp Mack,” she said.
Lauren owes the success to the sponsors and volunteers who helped put on the event. Without the assistance from their local community, such a fundraiser could not have been as successful. In fact, the event proved so successful that it will be hosted annually to help raise proceeds for other organizations and individuals in need, Lauren explained.
“We will make it annual because it is such a success against all odds,” she said. “Thank you to our community and sponsors for helping get the word out. We are very appreciative. We could not do it without you all and our volunteers and sponsors and community.”
