In The Name of Love

The families of two West Ashley business owners are working hard to alleviate the suffering their kids are going through.
Both the Watkins and Tiso families have kids facing tough medical times in the coming weeks. And both families are small business owners, with the former running Bashful Boutique in Avondale, and the latter’s family owns South of Philly Pizzeria in a shopping center off Glenn McConnell Parkway.
Sylvia Watkins, 10, will be going in for a kidney transplant and kidney removal the first week of November, the donor being her mother, Errica.
Sylvia, like her 14-year-old brother Beck, suffers from a rare form of cancer, that has made even dialysis problematic.
Jim and Ann Marie Tiso’s daughter, Giana, 4, will have surgery to have rods put in her back that same week to offset the scoliosis brought on by neurofibromatosis, a genetic condition that killed her grandfather and great-grandfather when tumors pressed in on their internal organs.
Jim suffers from the disorder also, but says his youngest two of his four kids have taken more grief from their diseases. Thankfully, Tiso’s 1-year-old son has shown no signs of scoliosis.
Additionally, Tiso’s 46-year-old sister, Tina, suffers from Lupus and is waiting her third kidney transplant. Tina who owns South of Philly and still works at the restaurant when chronic migraines and fatigue don’t prevent her from going out.
Friends, family, and customers have rallied around both families, helping to organize fundraisers to help out.
On Monday, Nov. 4, Tiso has pledged to donate every cent he makes that day at South of Philly to three foundations related to the diseases and conditions afflicting his family. “Whether it’s a record day or only a $1,000 day, all the money goes out to help raise awareness,” said Tiso.
Additionally, he’s planning to kickoff a home-cooked charity called Calzones for Care, where he would similarly donate .25 cents for every one of the calzone he sells in the future.
Tiso said his daughter’s surgery was originally scheduled for this week, but there was no way he was taking away her Halloween celebration and fun.
An all-day fundraiser for the Watkins family has been planned for Saturday, Nov. 9 at Southside 17 Bar & Grill, located at 3632 Savannah Hwy. (641-7043). The event will be a family-friendly affair, and will feature raffles, a cornhole tournament, a silent auction, and live music.
Wendy Thomas, a family friend of the Watkins, whose husband coaches travel baseball with Errica’s husband Brad, a former catcher at the University of South Carolina, organized the event. And if all goes according to plan, both Errica and Sylvia will miss the event, as their next transplant surgery window is the previous week.
“Brad will soon be the odd man out in the family, having both kidneys,” Errica jokes.
Thomas has also launched a Facebook page named “Hello Kidney Fundraiser” and, get this, features a cartoon of a kidney with a bow and cat face a la Hello, Kitty! The thumbnail is of Sylvia, with cute and fashionably pink-striped hair.
Sylvia’s brother Beck, an accomplished baseball player now at Academic Magnet High School, was similarly stricken, and also had to have a kidney removed earlier in life.
Sylvia will likely be in the hospital for at least one week and maybe two. Errica said the family’s biggest hope is that when she comes home and finishes rehabilitation; she will just get to finally feel better and enjoy more energy.
Because of the amount of time she has had cancer, and the rounds of chemo she has undergone, and the lower functioning of her kidney, Sylvia hasn’t felt all that well for quite a while, according to Errica.
Several West Ashley families have already jumped in the fray to help out the Watkins family, including a classmate and teammate’s family who will house Beck while his mom and sister are in the hospital.
Looks like there are opportunities for families from all across West Ashley to help out by eating a Philly Cheesesteak or playing some cornhole.
On Monday, Nov. 4, South of Philly will donate 100% of its profits to Scoliosis and Lupus research in the name of Giana and Tina. South of Philly is located at 2875 Ashley River Rd #5. For more information, call 556-6940
A fundraiser for Sylvia and Errica will be held Nov. 9 at Southside 17 Bar & Grill, located at 3632 Savannah Hwy. For more information, call 641-7043 or visit the Hello Kidney Facebook page.