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Murfreesboro, TN (WSMV) — At 7 years old, every breath Tristan takes is a fight to stay alive.
“They did warn us if he got sick, that it was fatal,” Tristan’s mother Kristi Green said, holding back tears.
Tristan has a rare form of cancer.
Green said he was diagnosed with B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Tristan has been battling leukemia since he was five.
“The day before our 100-day post-transplant, we got the news that, that was it, and it was terminal,’ Green said.
Any day now could be his last.
“After he relapsed, they told us in the beginning, if they relapsed in the first five years, there’s not a whole lot they can do,” Green said.
Tristan’s illness also hit his family financially.
“We made ends meet up until COVID happened and the transplant relapse. We struggled, but we always made sure the bills got paid, even if we were late,” Green said. “Then when he relapsed, it really just went downhill from there.”
Tristan’s parents told News4 they tried explaining the situation to their landlord, but eviction now looms around the corner.
Their Murfreesboro neighbors stepped in to help. Joni Winsett is the founder of the Facebook group Christmas Love.
“His wishes were to have one more Christmas and to play in the snow,” Winsett said.
They made it happen by renting an Airbnb and throwing Tristan a Christmas party, filled with joy and snow. They also collected money for the family’s bills.
“We arrived there yesterday to pay, and they refused to take payment, absolutely refused it,” Winsett said. “They said we’re not taking any money from then. We want them out.”
News4 contacted the couple’s landlord. All she would say is that the family is being evicted and then hung up the phone.
“I just feel like even me saying, ‘Hey, my son has cancer, we’re going through this right now.’ All the judge can say is that it’s their property, it’s up to them, and I can’t really force them to let you stay there,” Andrew Waldron, Tristan’s stepfather, said.
Any minute now, Tristan could take his final breath, but his mom and dad know that their precious little boy will keep on fighting with every fiber left inside of him.
“He’s a real-life superhero. If a real superhero has seen him, they would call him a superhero. That’ show tough he is,” Waldron said.
“He’s my champion,” Green said.
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