Safe travel: Ministry improves commute for family suffering from pediatric cancer

When Andy Thrower first met Crystal Rhodes, he noticed something he didn’t like.

Her car.

Rhodes, a single mother and Crenshaw County resident, was carrying fuel and radiator fluid around with her in an aging, unreliable vehicle, and it didn’t sit well with Thrower, the co-founder and president of aTeam Ministries in Homewood. Thrower knew she was making a weekly three-hour, one-way commute to Children’s Hospital where her son was undergoing treatment for leukemia.

And, as of Jan. 3, Rhodes will be making that drive in much better conditions.

aTeam Ministries, in partnership with Bentley GMC, Cadillac, and GMC of Huntsville and another donor, provided Rhodes and her three sons a 2005 Buick Rendezvous that will deliver the family safely to chemotherapy treatments in Birmingham.

“All we did was send out an email to a few folks saying, ‘Here is a need,’” Thrower said. “And it didn’t take long for it to be met. So we’re just glad to be a part of it.”

aTeam Ministries assists families suffering with pediatric cancer in three ways – emotional, spiritual and financial, Thrower said. And this project, he said, was extremely special.

“We’re not used to doing cars,” he said,  “and may not be able to do it again. But fortunately, this time we were able to partner with some folks and make this happen for this sweet little family from south Alabama.”

For more, visit ateamministries.org.