A walk to remember a much-loved daughter
BY JAY BODAS
Staff Writer

COURTESY OF THE PAPKIN FAMILY A walk will be held at the lake at Roosevelt Park on Sept. 24 to remember Edison resident Kaitlyn Papkin, who passed away in 2003 from a brain tumor at the age of 6.

EDISON - Kaitlyn Jennifer Papkin died of brain cancer in 2003, two weeks short of her seventh birthday.

On Sept. 24, her family and friends will gather at the Roosevelt Park lake at 9 a.m. to honor her memory and create more awareness of brain cancer in children, and to raise funds for others who have this devastating childhood illness. It will be the family's third annual walk for Kaitlyn.

"We are doing it because I don't want people to forget my daughter, and I want her to be remembered and honored," said Kaitlyn's mother, Donna Papkin. "She died of something that is an awful disease, and people are not aware that little children suffer with it. The funds raised from the walk [will] go toward that, so the public becomes more aware and so we can try to find a cure."

Kaitlyn was diagnosed at the beginning of 2002 with a lethal brain tumor called brain stem glioma.

"It was in an area that was inoperable, and the percentage of survival is zero," Donna said. "There was no family history of the disease. It was a one-in-a-million chance, and we have no idea where it came from. She was diagnosed on Feb. 14, 2002, and she left us on Dec. 11, 2003."

Kaitlyn went through a very aggressive treatment regimen, which included chemotherapy, radiation and stem-cell transplantation.

"She went through three months of chemotherapy and then a week of strong chemotherapy," Donna said. "Then, after a stem-cell transplant and radiation, her tumor actually shrank 25 percent. She was kind of in remission for six months, but then ... she [went] downhill from there."

Kaitlyn was diagnosed shortly after telling her mother that she could feel something different near the back of her head.

"I thought she might have had sinuses or something, though even that did not sound right, so I took her for a CAT scan," Donna said. "An hour later, I got the worst news of my life. I went back for an MRI, which was when she was definitively diagnosed."

The family told Kaitlyn as much as they could about her illness.

"She knew she was sick, but I would never tell her she was going to die," Donna said. "I told her to take her medicine, which would help her get better. I think she knew at the end, though, because she said she didn't want to take her medicine [anymore].

"I never really believed she would die," Kaitlyn's mother added. "I thought that there would be a miracle."

Kaitlyn always knew what her treatments would involve, according to her mother.

"We never lied to her," Donna said. "She was just a very brave kid and did everything she had to do. She never complained. Just a very brave, confident, courageous and great kid all-around."

This year, all money raised through the walk will go to the Tomorrows Children's Fund at Hackensack University Medical Center in Bergen County, where Kaitlyn was treated. The fund helps the families of children undergoing treatment there for cancer or serious blood disorders.

The Papkins are hoping to have more than 100 participants at the event.

"It is about helping other children with devastating diseases and about remembering my daughter," Donna said. "Though she lived a short life, she may be able to help other children, and my daughter would be so happy to know she was able to do that. Hopefully, we can find a cure for other poor kids going through this."

Kaitlyn Papkin is survived by her parents, Donna and Bruce; her sister, Alexis, 11; and three half-sisters, Angie, Elena and Erica.

Donations may be sent to Tomorrows Children's Fund in memory of Kaitlyn J. Papkin, 30 Prospect Ave., Hackensack 07601. Contributions can also be made the morning of the walk.

For more information, go to www.tcikids.com or call the Papkin family at (732) 417-0209.