Ellie Strong: The Road Ahead

July 28, 2026

We Are Overwhelmed by Your Kindness ❤️

When we started this journey, we never could have imagined where it would take us. What began as hope for a wheelchair-accessible van has grown into something so much bigger… a community that has wrapped its arms around our family in ways we never thought possible. Every donation, every share, every fundraiser, every kind word, and every person who has helped spread Ellie’s story has brought us one step closer to making safe transportation a reality. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you. We are incredibly grateful to the businesses and organizations that have generously hosted fundraisers for our family, including Curly’s of Boonton, Jersey Mike’s of Lincoln Park, DonutNV of Northeast NJ, the Boonton Elks, Kona Ice, Bonfire, Chipotle, Panera Bread, GroupRaise/Dave & Buster’s, and Diane Jansson of PaperPie. Your generosity and belief in our family mean more than we can ever express. We also want to thank our amazing friends, family, churches, foundations, and the countless people who were once complete strangers but chose to stand beside us. Your compassion has reminded us that there is so much good in this world, and we will never forget the love you’ve shown Ellie. While we’ve come so far, our journey isn’t over yet… and we have some exciting opportunities ahead! Upcoming Fundraisers🥪 Jersey Mike’s & DonutNV of Lincoln Park 2.0Sunday, August 2 | 3:00–9:00 PM Join us for another delicious fundraiser featuring Jersey Mike’s and DonutNV of Northeast NJ!🎉 Boonton Underground’s First FridayFriday, August 7 | 5:00–9:00 PM Hosted by Boonton Underground and many wonderful Boonton businesses, this is sure to be a fun evening for the whole family.✂️ Crop & Craft Weekend August 21–22Hosted by Jennifer Smith, with event space generously provided by the Boonton Elks. (See event flyer for times.)✨ And one more thing… SURPRISE! We have another fundraiser in the works that we can’t wait to share with you. Stay tuned for the announcement! Every event, every donation, and every share brings us closer to giving Ellie the safe, accessible transportation she needs. Thank you for believing in our family and for traveling this road alongside us.

With endless gratitude, Stephanie, Josh, Brooke, Ben, Jacob, & Ellie ❤️

June 15, 2026

Yesterday was nothing short of extraordinary.As we sit here trying to process everything that happened, one thing is abundantly clear: we could never have done this alone.To every volunteer who helped before, during, and after the event—thank you. From setting up, running activities, managing logistics, and cleaning up at the very end, you made this day possible.To everyone who attended, donated, bid, shared, cheered us on, and supported us from both near and far—thank you. Every single contribution, no matter the size, helped move us one step closer to our goal.To our local and national business sponsors, thank you for believing in Ellie and supporting our family in such meaningful ways.To our friends and family, thank you for stepping up in ways we never could have imagined. The love and support you’ve shown throughout this journey continues to leave us speechless.To our incredible nurses and therapists, thank you for giving us the opportunity to focus on this event while knowing our children were safe, cared for, and as regulated as possible. Your support behind the scenes means more than words can express.Thank you to the state assemblywomen (Marisa Sweeney & Aura Dunn), town council members (Benjamin Weisman & Danielle Cascone), and the officers from Boonton Volunteer EMS who took time out of their busy schedules to attend and support our mission. Seeing community leaders show up for Ellie and our family meant so much.Thank you to Captain America for making a special appearance and bringing smiles, excitement, and a little bit of superhero magic to so many faces throughout the day.To our silent auction contributors and bidders—wow. What started as one table turned into seven! Thank you for your incredible generosity and enthusiasm. And to the friends who somehow transformed into accountants for the day, managing our massive silent auction, online bidding, and in-person bids—you are absolute rock stars. We truly could not have done it without you.A special thank you to Tommy Hilcken for serving as our emcee and bringing his friends along for even more entertainment throughout the entire event.Thank you to Kona Ice (NW Passaic) who arrived planning a simple dine-to-donate partnership and ended up supporting us in a much bigger way than anyone expected.Thank you to Spaziani Catering & Food Design, Catfight Coffee, Hoover's Tavern, Bagels n’ Crumbs, Complete Care at Regent, To The Moon and Back Cupcakery, Chef Keith (who also served as our incredible barista), Just4U by Sue, Yaya & PiPi, and Grandma & Pa for helping keep our guests fed, hydrated, caffeinated, and happy all day long.Thank you to Heather of Two Little Details Co. (find her on Instagram!) for arriving first thing in the morning to create an absolutely gorgeous custom photo backdrop for our guests. Your creativity, talent, and attention to detail gave us a beautiful space to capture memories from a day we’ll never forget.Thank you to Riverstone Therapies, LLC and The Zigzag Flow, Inc. for creating a safe and welcoming space for children who needed a break from the excitement and for ending the day with an incredible music and dance circle.Thank you to Arabella—Brooke’s BFF, junior teacher, and black belt extraordinaire—for sharing her skills and helping newcomers learn.Thank you to Aunt Emmy (& Patty) for creating and running an art table filled with activities for our littlest guests. From the moment the event began, children were drawn to the creativity, fun, and hands-on projects you thoughtfully prepared. Thank you for helping make the day special for so many families.Thank you to Maddie of Baby Devil Tattoo Co. for providing the most amazing temporary tattoos we’ve ever seen. Both adults and kids were loving their new ink!Thank you to Lauren Moran and Joey Fisher for capturing the day and helping preserve these memories through their incredible vlogging skills.Thank you to Help Hope Live, the nonprofit organization that makes campaigns like ours possible. Your guidance, resources, and support have helped turn what once felt impossible into something we can truly work toward. We are so grateful for everything you do for families facing extraordinary medical challenges.And finally, thank you to the Boonton Elks Lodge #1405. You didn’t simply provide a venue—you welcomed us with open arms and became true partners in making this event a success. From the moment we began planning, you stepped up in ways we never could have imagined. Your generosity, support, and belief in our mission helped create a day that our family will never forget.Because of all of you, we raised $11,000 yesterday alone. That total doesn’t include business sponsorships or personal and business contributions made before the event.Most importantly, we watched an entire community come together around one little girl. Our little girl. The love, generosity, and support shown yesterday is something our family will carry with us forever.When your goal is as big as ours, one event—even an incredible one—isn’t enough to get you all the way there. But the fact that we’ve come this far is something we never could have imagined. Never in our wildest dreams did we think we’d be here.Every dollar raised brings us closer to a wheelchair-accessible van that will give Ellie greater comfort, safety, and independence, while allowing our family to navigate daily life more easily.Thank you for believing in Ellie. Thank you for believing in our family. Thank you for helping build The Road Ahead.Stay tuned for more events and announcements in the coming weeks and months, and please continue sharing our campaign as we move closer and closer to our goal.With endless gratitude,Stephanie, Josh, Brooke, Ben, Jacob, and of course… Ellie ❤️