Angie Allen, a wife and mother of four young children, is fighting a battle against an all too common enemy. Angie’s Army was created in an effort to support her and her family during this tumultuous time. In February of 2022, Angie was in nursing school preparing to take her clinicals when she became suddenly ill. On 03/03/22 she was life-flighted to Salt Lake City where she was diagnosed with B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.

This is a cancer that affects your white blood cells growing in bone marrow.  These white blood cells are supposed to help you fight infections but for some reason they turn into leukemia and they live longer than normal cells and reproduce quickly.  They build up in the bone marrow and move to the blood stream and the rest of the body. Due to the aggressive nature of this cancer, Angie began chemotherapy treatment immediately. For her, this will take 9 months or more to complete.  At this time, she is required to stay within one hour of the medical facility in Salt Lake City until her treatment is finished. Eventually, she will have to receive a bone marrow transplant.  Currently, there are approximately 33 million registered donors from dozens of countries but it isn’t always enough to find a match.  The ideal donors are between the ages of 18-40.  You can find more information on bone marrow donors at bethematch.org.

Travis, Angie’s husband and a 5th grade teacher at Virgin Valley Elementary, stays in Mesquite along with their children during the week as he works and they attend school at Virgin Valley Elementary and Charles Hughes Middle School. At the end of each week he makes the 6-hour drive from Mesquite to Salt Lake to spend the weekends with Angie. Naturally, travel and medical expenses are adding up quickly.

In an effort to lighten this family’s load, a dinner and raffle is taking place on Monday, May 9, at the Mesquite City Rec Center West Fields Pavilion, from 4:30-7:30 PM. This event is NOT sponsored by the Mesquite Recreation Center.  Many have offered their support both physically and financially to help with this event.  All food, labor and raffle items have been provided and organized by Angie’s Army and a community of generous donors.  The dinner is $10 a plate and includes pulled pork, fried rice, salad, and roll. Raffle tickets are $5.00 for 1 ticket, $50 for 15 tickets, or $100 for 30 tickets. All proceeds will go directly to the Allen Family.