Meet Our CMN Hero – Oaklynn!

For almost six years, Oaklynn was like any other child. She played with dolls, made arts and crafts, and spent lots of time with her Nana and Papa. But last year, something changed – and it changed fast. 

Oaklynn occasionally ran low-grade fevers, but around Thanksgiving in 2023, they started to happen more frequently. Then, by March 2024, urinary issues began, and what her parents April and Greg thought would be a simple trip to Urgent Care turned their world upside down. After bloodwork, x-rays, and a round of tests, they received a diagnosis they weren’t expecting: stage 4 Wilms Tumor kidney cancer. The next 41 days were spent in the hospital with the Pediatric Oncology team at Gundersen Health System, trying to shrink a baseball sized tumor. 

But through it all, Oaklynn, who lives in Utica, Minn. has fought. The multiple rounds of chemotherapy and radiation, the extended hospital stays, the surgeries.  She didn’t let any of that stop her. And on Oct. 17, 2024, Oaklynn got to ring the bell, signifying the end of her treatment. The example she provides to everyone going through cancer treatment makes her our Hero. 

And while April and Greg were forced to navigate this unforeseen medical journey with their daughter, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals took care of the little things, providing gas cards for the family’s frequent trips to several care facilities and meal vouchers for extended stays in La Crosse. That allowed them to focus on what was most important at the time: the health of their daughter. 

“CMN Hospitals is crucial to provide support to families so they can focus on their child when they are experiencing difficult, complicated medical diagnosis and long treatments,” April says. 

Now, Oaklynn can get back to doing what she loves, like playing volleyball with her sister, learning karate with her brother, and spending time with her chickens.