NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Ten-year-old Olivia Gupton is spreading joy by handing out gnomes to young cancer patients.
Olivia is a patient at The Children’s Hospital at TriStar Centennial, part of the Sarah Cannon Cancer network.
“Hi, how are you?” Olivia said as she gave one of her cherished toys to 10-month-old Joshua Cruz.
She spreads joy before treatment for lymphoblastic leukemia.
"It makes me feel happy that they’re going to be happy," Olivia Gupton said.
It all started when she went to Aldi in Springfield with her mom to get a seasonal gnome after leaving the doctor.
Then, people got wind of Olivia's love for plush gnomes and they started sending them to her in Robertson County. "I like this one; someone made it for me,” Gupton said. “And also this one’s really cute as well."
Now, she's sharing her collection with other cancer patients.
“It just gives me such a sense of pride that she’s having to go through so much but she still thinks of other people, and it just shows what a big heart she has," Olivia's mom, Enjoli Gupton, said. "So, as a parent, it just makes me happy to know that she’s such an awesome person and cares so much for others.”
The bracelets Olivia hands out say 'gnome one fights alone.'
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
