Gaming fundraiser for Hunterdon high school hero

You know, I don’t care who you are, high school years are not easy. Whether you’re the loner or the popular kid or anyone else, those teenage years are filled with pressure and self-doubt and angst and stuff most of us wouldn’t really want to repeat.

But here’s a story about a family that is going through the ringer and a young guy and his sister who are not having the typical anxious teenage melodrama. Their drama is quite real. It’s life and death and loneliness.

Ian Hewitt and his younger sister Morgan live in Hunterdon County. He’s a junior at North Hunterdon High School and studies automotive technology at Hunterdon County Polytech. His sister hopes to go there too and take healthcare classes, if she can make it.

You see, she’s fighting a rare combination of two leukemias at once and needs a bone marrow transplant. Turns out Ian is a match. Now he’s heroically not hesitating to be a donor. But he’s already had to very much take on a lot of responsibility for a kid his age since his mom has had to be there so much for Morgan and the many medical appointments and his dad works odd hours.

But it’s going to get even harder for Ian. Once he goes through the procedure to donate his marrow he will not be allowed to even see his sister nor his mother for a full 100 straight days because of the need to medically quarantine. This also means with his dad’s crazy schedule the poor kid is going to largely be on his own handling everything at home.

A very good friend of Ian’s is Dominick Edwards. He wants to help support Ian, cheer him up through these bad times, offer some assistance. He’s just a kid too, though. But he had an idea.

Thus was born an online gaming fundraiser to raise money for things like gift cards for gas and area restaurants. It will help Ian better take care of himself through this dark time. What a great friend and what a great idea.

The game is Rocket League and is free and available on all platforms. It will be a one-on-one tournament and is just $10 to enter. It happens Saturday March 27 and will run 3pm to 5pm.

If you’re interested in signing up for the tournament or just want to donate directly to the fundraiser without playing, email Ian’s friend Dominick at domed2003@gmail.com. He’ll go over everything you need to know.

All the best to this family.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski. Any opinions expressed are Jeff Deminski's own.