Local boy finds unique way to help best friend with cancer

LEXINGTON,Tenn. — 7-year-old Avery Blankenship started getting concerned when he found out his best friend was sick and wanted to help him in a unique way.

“I started to worry about him whenever I found out he had cancer and he was in the hospital, but now he’s at home feeling better,” said Blankenship.

That’s when Blankenship decided he needed to help his best friend by selling his drawings.

“At first I didn’t know what to do with them and then he was in the hospital so whenever I found out I didn’t know what to do with the money. I just thought I was going to buy toys but I usually do that. So I decided not to do that so I just donated it to Bob that had cancer in the hospital,” said Blankenship.

At first he wasn’t sure how much money he was going to raise.

“I thought I was going to raise only a hundred and something,” said Blankenship.

But he ended up raising much more than that.

“About 720 dollars,” said Blankenship.

While he draws everything by himself, he needed a little help from his stepmother.

“Jacquelyn is my assistant, she drives me around, for me to deliver my pictures,” said Blankenship.

Blankenship’s parents say they weren’t expecting him to do something like this.

“I was very surprised, but more importantly, I was super proud of him. It shows just how big of a heart he has,” said Jacquelyn Blankenship, Avery’s stepmother.

“He wants everyone to be happy and feel loved and appreciated and whenever he told me this was something he was wanting to do for a friend of his that was diagnosed with cancer, I couldn’t have been more proud of him for making that decision at such a young age,” said Brooks Roberts McKee, Avery’s mother.

If you would like to help Avery’s mission, click here.