'Jessa's Journey' event raises money for wheelchair van, medical expenses for Methuen girl

Jun 04, 2023

By Paul Burton

Updated on: August 28, 2023 / 6:59 AM / CBS Boston

METHUEN - A community came together in love to make an impact on the life of a beautiful young girl whose journey has been extremely tough.

"It's been a lot of praying and support from everyone," said Jacinta Moniz. She's talking about her daughter Jessa. In 2016, when she was only four weeks old, she caught respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, on Christmas night. Firefighters Patrick McKenna and Eric Moreau were the first to respond on scene. When they arrived, she was unresponsive.

"We knew we had to get her quick in the ambulance and to the hospital," said Moreau.

"It's nice seeing what we did so many years ago made such a big difference," said McKenna.

But both Jessa's journey and her struggle continues. The sickness took a toll on her health. She's suffered cardiac arrests, brain damage and still has seizures, which has left her with the inability to walk.

"They said she wouldn't walk or talk, they weren't sure exactly what she would be able to do but we just keep praying," Moniz said.

On Sunday the Methuen community came together at the Elks Club in Lawrence to hold a "Jessa's Journey" fundraiser to help the family with much needed medical expenses; one being a wheelchair van, to help get them around.

"A lot of appointments in Boston and if I don't have anyone to help lift her wheelchair out of the car, then I have to carry her everywhere," Moniz said.

Jessa's journey is far from over. The family has a lot of challenges, one of them being getting her to her appointments at Boston Children's Hospital. Right now, all they have is a car and this family of six needs a van to transport her safely.

"It would mean the world to us to have a safe vehicle for her and to transport all her brothers so we can be together as a family," Moniz said.

A family full of love and surrounded with support. All for a girl who is teaching everyone who comes across her journey the valuable lesson of remaining positive and to keep smiling.

"She's a fighter, laugher and every day I come home she's laughing for me," said Jessa's father, Jose Moniz.

Paul Burton is a general assignment reporter for WBZ-TV News.

First published on August 27, 2023 / 9:11 PM

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