ABC11 Together highlights good deeds, community needs and how our viewers can help
CLAYTON, N.C. (WTVD) -- The community has come together in a big way for Abby Norris, the little girl with fragile bones and a big personality.
Abby needs surgery to replace the metal rods that support her legs and she needed help fundraising to cover travel expenses for the surgery.
Within hours of our telling her story on ABC11, Abby met her fundraising goal on her GoFundMe page.
A young woman, living with the same disease, also saw the story and reached out to ABC11 to help.
Jessica Moore is 26 years old and lives in Elizabeth City on North Carolina's coast. She saw the story and wanted to connect with Abby and her mom to offer advice.
Monday, Abby and Jessica bonded over having Osteogenesis Imperfecta - a genetic disorder characterized by bones that break easily, often from little or no apparent cause. Jessica told Abby not to let the disease define her.
People in Clayton are also coming together to help Abby.
Abby's friends have spent weeks making and selling bead bracelets to help her fundraise.
Monday, those friends - Sophia O'Neill, 9, Molly O'Neill, 7, and Kylee Narron, 8 - presented Abby with the money they've raised, and bracelets they created just for her.
Abby said the love and support she's received will give her something to smile about when she's recovering from her surgery this fall.
"It will hurt, but I will know that they supported me, all the girls, and they help out a lot, and I thank them so much for that," Abby said.