Giving Back ... From As Far As South Dakota

by Jack Allaben, Pine Tree Apple Classic Player & Social Media Assistant

Meet Claudia!

Claudia will soon become the newest member of the Pine Tree family as a volunteer when she and other members of the Brandon Valley High School Girls Tennis Team travel all the way from Brandon, S.D., located just outside of Sioux Falls, for the 2024 Pine Tree Apple Tennis Classic. Why are they traveling all that way for this year's tournament? As Claudia's father, Kyle, explains, the Pine Tree’s mission holds deep significance to Claudia and their family. 

“In February 2021, our world was turned upside down," Kyle shared. "Claudia suffered a seizure at home while preparing for Super Bowl LV. This was the first and only seizure Claudia has had, and it really caught us off guard. In the following days, she underwent several tests in Sioux Falls including an MRI. The MRI revealed some brain abnormalities and a tumor in her left occipital lobe. After several appointments and consults, we asked our local oncologist for a referral and a second opinion. That referral led us to Children's Minnesota with Dr. Anne Bendel and Dr. Meysam Kebriaei spearheading the charge. After our first meeting with these two amazing doctors, we knew Children's Minnesota was where we needed to be to face this journey head-on." 

In the weeks following, Children’s Minnesota conducted its own MRI, and started developing a treatment plan. The biggest challenge was the tumor was pushing up against Claudia's vision center and vision impairment could be a strong possibility post-surgery. Potential vision impairment versus the long-term prognosis without surgery was contemplated and, in the end, it was decided that surgery to remove the tumor was the best course of action. Soon, Claudia underwent a more in-depth and detailed MRI to map the brain and chart a path to resect the tumor. In April 2021, Claudia underwent surgery at Children’s Minnesota in St. Paul. 

"We are extremely happy to report that the amazing doctors, with the technology that they had available, were able to fully resect her tumor," Kyle said. 

Three years later, there are no signs of regrowth, and the surgical site has fully healed. Claudia does have some minor vision impairment based on recent ophthalmology tests; however, it certainly doesn’t impact her day-to-day life or slow her down at all. 

Today Claudia participates in all the activities that she loves, including the sport of tennis. Claudia will be a junior at Brandon Valley and is preparing for her third season with the tennis program, which starts in a few weeks. She truly has a passion for the sport and puts in countless hours a week working on her game. 

"When learning about the Pine Tree Apple Classic late last year, we knew this was an opportunity to help give back to a wonderful organization that has impacted so many lives," Kyle said. "It is a great opportunity to honor Claudia and what she went through, as well as the perfect team-building and bonding opportunity for her and some of her teammates ahead of the upcoming tennis season.

"It is also a tremendous opportunity to raise funds for our tennis program through Pine Tree's Volunteer Give Back Program and the generous partnership with its anonymous donor and USTA Northern, while at the same time volunteering at an event that historically raises significant dollars for Children’s Minnesota. We are forever indebted to Children’s Minnesota and the talented team that they have, and we felt that this is just a small way to give back. It is hard to put into words the impact that they have had on Claudia and our family, and we are eternally grateful that we were brought together.”