Courageous teen w/half a face stands up to bullies
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/teen-half-face-stands-bullies/story?id=21036047This young woman possess more strength and courage that many adults will every possess. My son has the same type of tumor and has walked this young woman's path.
We were lucky in that the bullies were in elementary school. Middle school turned into heaven and high school as well. His peers were accepting of him and even as a freshman he was invited to sit with the cheerleaders.
There are many people who shy away from those who are different but that is their loss.
I am very thankful for the surgeons who help folks like Sarah and my son. The tumor is caused by neurofibromatosis type 1. The tumor wraps around the muscles and nerves of her face. It is the same color as the nervous system and can be as thick as your thumb in some parts and as thin as dental floss in others. With tumors like this the rule is function over form. So if everything is functioning you do not do surgery to debulk.
Why not do more surgery is a common question. With this type of tumor surgery can cause the tumor to become even more aggressive and grow even faster than before.
I am posting this story because I am very thankful for Sarah and her courage.
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but thank you. It is people like yourself who make the world a better place. 
Folks like Sarah, Reggie Bibbs, and my son are often ridiculed by those who should know better but for some reason feel it is okay to discriminate against the facially different.
As a mom, I did find Sarah's mom a bit in denial about not knowing how much Sarah was being bullied or how Sarah felt. My son sobbed for the first 9 weeks of each school year kdg to third grade. He had one close friend in the elementary years. Luckily he had a great sense of humor. And when he heard the 'fat face' cat calls he would say to the name caller, "What good eyes you have. Your'e going to be a great detective some day." (Of course, I helped coach him with lines like that. Never, ever let them see you cry.)
Sturge–Weber syndrome creates a similar kind of deformity of the face, only hers is created by malformed blood vessels that are "port wine" in color.
Our town and other friends of hers took up a collection recently to help her get surgery because the syndrome was causing her breathing difficulty and bad headaches.
Theresa is truly a gift to this community, as are her partner and their young daughter. Most people I know jumped at the chance to help her, because she has given so much of her time and effort to various volunteer efforts around town.
http://www.helpingtheresa.com/helpingtheresa/default.aspx
It is so uplifting to see people who have dealt with diseases like this with grace and courage.
