SOUTHGATE, Mich. – With Easter is right around the corner, a Southgate family has decided to help the Easter Bunny drop off eggs -- for a good cause.
Those who live in Downriver communities may awaken to find their lawns adorned with Easter eggs, with proceeds supporting a young girl impacted by seizures.
Meet Emmy Nisbett, who is helping her mom fill Easter eggs to raise funds for a very important upcoming trip. Emmy has a family dog right now but next month she’s getting another dog -- a service dog -- to help her with her condition
“So she was born with a genetic mutation called EEF1A2, which is very rare,” said Alana Nisbett, Emmy’s mother. “When we first got diagnosed, only 100 people in the world were diagnosed with this genetic condition.
This rare condition causes epilepsy. When Emmy was first diagnosed, she was having hundreds of small seizures in a single day. She’s had three terrifying seizures in her lifetime
“She has had three of those big ones where she falls down and shakes in her eyes rolled back and completely unresponsive,” Nisbett said.
Those episodes changed everything for Emmy’s parents, who said they need to be near her at all times to keep her safe. They’ve lost sleep to monitor Emmy’s well-being and to make sure she is OK.
Emmys parents will get some rest once Emmy is set up with her service dog, who will be able to alert them of a siezure sometimes even before it happens. The family raised $17,000 to get on the waiting list for the dog and it’s finally happening.
Before they can bring the dog home, the entire family is required to take a two-week trip to Ohio for a mandatory training with the the dog.
They still don’t know the dog’s breed or name.
Of course a two week family trip for training isn’t cheap. There’s lodging, food and travel expenses. That’s why Alayna is hoping to raise money for her daughter’s cause by delivering Easter eggs to your home the night before Easter Sunday.
They’re offering 25 eggs for $25, 50 eggs for $45 and 100 eggs for $80.
Collectively, the service dog could cost the family at least $40,000, but the family said it’s worth it once Emmy is paired with her life-saving dog. If you’d like to help out, you can sign up here.