Corey’s Crusaders to gather to celebrate his life, support family in grief

Corey Smith, a sweet and loving 4-year old, the light in his family’s eyes, will forever be remembered for the joy he brought in his short time on earth. His family made the heartbreaking announcement that he passed away Saturday evening, Feb. 25.

“His memory will continue to beat in our hearts as we mourn his passing,” his family posted on the Corey’s Crusaders Facebook page.

Corey had been diagnosed with having an atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor [AT/RT]—a rare and fast growing cancerous tumor of the brain and spinal cord last month.

The tumor was discovered attached to his brain stem at the base of his skull on Jan. 30 and the following day he underwent emergency surgery to place a shunt to drain the fluid away from his brain.

A second surgery was conducted Feb. 1 to remove as much of the tumor as possible and a third procedure was conducted a few days later to place a permanent shunt.

The family wrote that the growing tumor caused a blood vessel in his brain to hemorrhage, “This caused him to slip into a coma as he could no long breathe on his own. We made the decision to end his suffering and let him rest forever.”

A benefit scheduled to assist the Smith family set for Sunday, March 5 will continue as planned. Corey’s family welcomes the community to join them in celebrating his life at that time.

The celebration of life and benefit will take place at the Goose Lake Hall, 3935 Goose Lake Rd., Morris from 4-7 p.m.

Proceeds from the spaghetti dinner and basket raffle benefit will go directly to the family. Dinner tickets at $10 each for spaghetti with meat sauce, garlic break, and water, available for eat in or take out.

Direct donations to assist the family can also be made to Corey’s Crusaders at Coal City Bank, Branch of Bank of Pontiac, 85 S. Broadway St.