Annual charity car show in Pahrump raises money for Kaylee Grace Petrovich, 6-year-old battling cancer

“You’re braver than you believe, you’re stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” — A.A. Milne

Jamee and Rick Petrovich’s 6-year-old daughter Kaylee Grace has always been a care-free, happy child, but after her diagnosis of stage 3 rhabdomyosarcoma (a rare and aggressive soft tissue cancer) this past August, she’s shown incredible courage in the face of adversity, especially as she nears the end of her treatment plan.

“She’s gone through radiation and chemo. The original plan was a 40-week chemo treatment plan with a six-week radiation plan,” says Kaylee’s grandmother, Shannon Smith-Turner, store manager at Smith’s Food and Drug in Pahrump. She continues, “I think, it’s harder for us to watch because she’s so resilient and is always smiling, and got a great attitude.”

Aside from the emotional toll experienced by the entire family, the financial burden on this single-income family of five has been crippling. Rick works for Erich’s Air Conditioning & Heating in Las Vegas, a small three-person operation, whose owner has accommodated generous unpaid time off for Kaylee’s treatment, but doesn’t offer health insurance.

On top of this, Kaylee must travel to Intermountain Health Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City for her chemo and radiation treatments, because Las Vegas doesn’t offer the level of pediatric oncology services Kaylee needs.

Smith-Turner said the during her six-week radiation treatment last fall, the family had to stay in Salt Lake City at a cost of $7,000. Smith-Turner told her son Rick, “If you have to sell your house and put money in the bank, and then just take a budgeted amount out for what’s going to cost you to live there, then do that, but we shouldn’t be sacrificing the care that she [Kaylee] deserves to satisfy the financial obligation.”

The Petrovichs have reached out to every resource and foundation available to help offset their financial hardship, from the Ronald McDonald House for lodging, to gas cards, to food.

Family and friends have been supportive and Smith-Turner started a GoFundMe account under “Kaylee Grace’s Cancer Treatment Journey,” which has raised over $28,000 as of this writing (https://www.gofundme.com/f/KayleePetrovich)

Sue Quale’s Annual Fundraising Car Show

Now enter Sue Quale, the long time manager of Coyote’s Den at 3971 E. Kellogg Rd., and friend to Smith-Turner. For the past 10 years, Quale has organized an annual charity car show at the Coyote’s Den, usually benefiting the local VFW.

This year, the car show took place last Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and, as Quale explains about this year’s event, “I just think that there needs to be more awareness for the children in the valley, especially in Las Vegas, because there are no facilities for children with cancer or anything like that.”

“So, not only have we brought awareness to Kaylee, we also brought awareness that there’s a huge need for a children’s facility in Las Vegas,” Quale continues. The raffles and donations brought in a lot of money for the Petrovichs, making Quale “super” proud to be a member of the community, as she puts it. “They all came out, not only to represent me, but to help Kaylee and her family.”

Smith-Turner was overwhelmed and very appreciative by the huge turnout for the event, and echos Quale’s sentiment, “Our area is in need of hospitals that have the technology to cater to families who have kids going through this.”

The event raised $7,272 for Kaylee’s treatment and travel expenses.

Smith-Turner represented the family at the event, as the Petrovichs were at the children’s hospital in Salt Lake City. Kaylee currently is battling several infections as a result of her compromised immune system, and will receive her second to the last chemo treatment if she’s well enough. The Petrovichs were understandably not available to comment on the fundraiser.

John Clausen is a freelance reporter living in Pahrump.