Seeing children anything but blissfully happy is heartbreaking.
A child's life should be simple, happy and healthy, but that is sometimes not the case.
Jill Steimer is a mother of 5, and as if that wasn't enough to handle, one of her little ones has an everyday health struggle.
Her, now 6-year-old Ellie, was 2-years-old she was diagnosed with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy.
This condition impacts her motor skills, speech and muscle movement, dramatically.
She can have seizures with no warning, and often falls because of her walking abilities. The only thing that can help manage her condition and help her become independent would be a service dog.
But, the service dog she needs costs $15,000. That is something Steimer cannot afford with such a young and large family, but sharing her story is what can help her reach that goal.
Below, you can look into Ellie's journey and her life, and a video following, showing how great Ellie's community is for helping her reach her goal, too.
This is the day Ellie was brought home from the hospital, her big sister and brother couldn't contain their excitement.
She is the middle child, of her 5 siblings, and they've all proven to be great support for her and her mom.
Steiner says when Ellie is having a rough day, the kids know to stay quieter and respect and care for what's going on in the house.
Here is a shot from when Ellie became a big sister — it's clear how much love and happiness she had too.
The love within this family is something that gets them through every day.
But the truth of it all is that Ellie needs more help to become independent than her siblings do.
So, 4 Paws For Ellie has been created.
4 Paws For Ellie is a Facebook group made with the help of 4 Paws For Ability, to share Ellie's journey and help raise money to get the service dog that she needs.
4 Paws For Ability has helped children everywhere get the service dogs they need since 1998.
This dog will be able to help her become independent by aiding her walking, helping her get back up when she falls down, alerting her family before seizures happen, and just being a loving companion too.
This is one of the recent posts on her Facebook group and it shows the clear struggle that Ellie and her family goes through.
Donating might not be something that anyone can contribute to, but if nothing else, this will help you realize how important it is to share Ellie's story.
Ellie and Jill Steiman need our help.
They've got a beautiful, happy family, but they need 4 paws to make it complete.
After Beatrice Timmerman, a woman from their town, saw Ellie's story on Facebook she decided to plan 'Ellie's Night.'
100% of the proceeds went to Ellie's dog fund, and they raised $3,000.
Ellie has $12,000 left to go, and if we get her story out there I believe we can help her get there.
Visit their fundraising site by clicking here!
Please SHARE this beautiful little girl's story with everyone you know!
