That changed Feb. 18, when Liz Albertson, his aunt in Bellevue, suffered a seizure in the middle of the night, waking her husband. Within a month, the families' worst fears were confirmed.
Liz was diagnosed with a glioblastoma multiforme brain tumor, an aggressive cancer that crushes hope as well as life in its tentacles.
When asked about her chance of survival, she answered, "not really any."
With her tumor too big to be removed surgically, Liz said she's looking at another year of life, maybe 15 months.
After hearing the news, Ben and his parents, Rick and Ann Marie Read, discussed what they could do.
"We were devastated by this," said Ann Marie, Liz's older sister. "We said this is obvious, we need to do something to support Liz."
After conferring with Liz, Ben agreed to turn his recital June 8 into a benefit for the American Brain Tumor Association, an organization his aunt said she and her doctors respect.
"More than just letting people listen to music, it will have a greater affect than that," Ben said.
A 16-year-old junior, Ben had already hoped to hold his recital this spring, to free up more time his senior year for Advanced Placement classes and to apply for college.
The early date means his aunt, a 47-year-old public defender and the married mother of a daughter in college and a son in high school, can attend. Liz and Ann Marie also have a brother in Bellingham, Tom McNeely, as well as a sister in Seattle.
With top grades and a love of math, Ben is thinking of applying to such schools at Stanford, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study engineering. He doesn't just hit the books, however. He also plays marimba and xylophone with the high school band, and has studied piano on the side.
"He's a nice, easygoing kid," his aunt said. "Obviously incredibly smart, but pretty social, as well."
For his recital, Ben plans to play classical piano and Latin marimba pieces, and talk briefly about the Brain Tumor Association.
Liz has undergone six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy so far, and is enjoying four weeks off before restarting chemo five days a month. She's tired a lot and has lost her hair on the left side of her head, but she can get around and she looks forward to coming to Bellingham for Ben's performance.
"I was really touched when I heard that what he wanted to do," she said. "He's just a nice kid."
With her tumor too big to be removed surgically, Liz said she's looking at another year of life, maybe 15 months.
After hearing the news, Ben and his parents, Rick and Ann Marie Read, discussed what they could do.
"We were devastated by this," said Ann Marie, Liz's older sister. "We said this is obvious, we need to do something to support Liz."
After conferring with Liz, Ben agreed to turn his recital June 8 into a benefit for the American Brain Tumor Association, an organization his aunt said she and her doctors respect.
"More than just letting people listen to music, it will have a greater affect than that," Ben said.
A 16-year-old junior, Ben had already hoped to hold his recital this spring, to free up more time his senior year for Advanced Placement classes and to apply for college.
The early date means his aunt, a 47-year-old public defender and the married mother of a daughter in college and a son in high school, can attend. Liz and Ann Marie also have a brother in Bellingham, Tom McNeely, as well as a sister in Seattle.
With top grades and a love of math, Ben is thinking of applying to such schools at Stanford, Princeton and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to study engineering. He doesn't just hit the books, however. He also plays marimba and xylophone with the high school band, and has studied piano on the side.
"He's a nice, easygoing kid," his aunt said. "Obviously incredibly smart, but pretty social, as well."
For his recital, Ben plans to play classical piano and Latin marimba pieces, and talk briefly about the Brain Tumor Association.
Liz has undergone six weeks of radiation and chemotherapy so far, and is enjoying four weeks off before restarting chemo five days a month. She's tired a lot and has lost her hair on the left side of her head, but she can get around and she looks forward to coming to Bellingham for Ben's performance.
"I was really touched when I heard that what he wanted to do," she said. "He's just a nice kid."
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