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When Brad and Vickie Ingle’s 9-year-old son Alex was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare type of cancer, in October, their world was turned upside down and inside out.

“Our ‘normal’ is no longer normal, and making a plan has become nonexistent,” Vickie said. “But, one thing is still the same — God is in control.”

As the Ingles’ lives have gone topsy-turvy, there has been an outpouring of support from friends, family, their church and other churches, as well as the community.

The Ingles live in Gibsonville. Mount Pleasant United Methodist Church in Greensboro is holding a blood drive and bone marrow registration in honor of Alex from 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“To support him and to focus public attention on the constant need for blood and bone marrow donors to support folks like Alex, we decided to make this regular blood drive in his honor and to combine it with a bone marrow registration drive,” said Jeff Phipps, blood drive coordinator at the church. “His (Alex’s) aunt, Lisa Clapp, is a member here, and her extended family becomes our extended family.”

In addition, Clapp and several members of Calvary Baptist Church of McLeansville, where the Ingles are members, are organizing a “Tea Party with Molly” fundraiser at 2 p.m. Feb. 6. Molly is Alex’s 8-year-old sister. He also has a 21-year-old sister, Megan Roberts.

“Molly hasn’t felt a part of other fundraisers for Alex, so we wanted to help her feel more a part of the community’s efforts to help,” said Beverly Stanley, one of the organizers.

For a $15 donation, girls 14 and younger can have their hair, nails and makeup done, and mothers can have their nails and makeup done for $10. Stanley, as well as several other members of the church who are beauticians, and local volunteers, will lend their services for the party.

The tea party also will include entertainment, tea and refreshments and a bake sale, and organizers are seeking donations from local businesses for a raffle.

“As a mother, my heart bleeds for them, and I’ll do whatever I can for them,” Stanley said. “They are special to us and our church.”

Alex’s journey began with back and leg pain. Though orthopedic X-rays showed nothing abnormal, Alex’s pain continued, often waking him up in the night. The Ingles relentlessly pushed to find the cause.

Alex was diagnosed with cancer on Oct. 15, sent to Brenner Children’s Hospital the next day and received the final diagnosis of Ewing’s Sarcoma on Oct. 23. Ewing’s Sarcoma is a rare type of cancer, more prevalent in males, found in the bone or in soft tissue. Doctors believe Alex’s cancer originated in the leg or liver, and it has spread to three places on the spine and rib.

Diagnosis in hand, the Ingles prepared for battle.

“We were devastated to say the least,” Vickie Ingle said. “My heart has never hurt so much.”

Alex is undergoing aggressive chemotherapy for 30 weeks with surgery and radiation in between.

An accountant, Ingle cut her hours at work so that she can home school Alex using the fourth-grade curriculum of Burlington Christian Academy, where Alex attended. An athlete and avid sports fan, Alex had to put baseball and basketball play on hold for a while, but he has taken up learning to yo-yo and loves playing computer games, such as FarmVille. He’s lost 13 pounds, and Ingle said their concern now is to help him maintain his weight. Whatever he’s craving, they do their best to get it for him.

Described by his mom as shy, Alex is not crazy about all the attention he is receiving. He is often tired and sometimes angry, but overall his parents say he is remaining positive.

The Ingles said they are humbled by all the support from those around them, including total strangers.

For example, Alex has received cards from across the country, and he’s come to excitedly anticipate the mail delivery each day. Some cards contain $1, which Alex places in his bank account. He also receives daily words of encouragement on his CaringBridge web site -- www.caringbridge.org/visit/alexingle.

Camp Brendon, a local nonprofit, has held two fundraisers for the family, raising around $2,000, and Pleasant Garden Community Center, where Alex plays baseball, raised money to help with expenses. The family’s church, Calvary Baptist, as well as Mount Pleasant and their former church, Northside Baptist, have offered support. His school held a fundraiser, and his class sent him a special video of daily class routines for Christmas. Others, such as Megan’s boss from American Eagle, have given generous donations, and the Greensboro Batting Center sent some professional baseball players to meet Alex.

“Who would have ever thought the community would pull together like this?” Ingle said. “It’s overwhelming.”

Ingle, whose husband, Brad, is manager of Mike’s Tire Center in Greensboro, a family business, said they are blessed to have good insurance, but they still must deal with co-payments, loss of work, the drive back and forth to Brenner and eating out much of the time.

“I’m just so thankful people would do so much for us,” Ingle said. “It makes us feel so loved.”
Through it all, the family’s faith has remained a constant.

“God will see us through this and will be there with us at the finish line when we win this race,” Ingle said.

Contact Jennifer Atkins Brown at 574-5582 or jennifer.brown @news-record.com.