TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) This weekend the Arizona Diamondbacks will honor a Tucson girl who passed away after fighting an aggressive brain tumor.
Five-year-old Gianna Hurtado died in January after she was diagnosed with DIPG in May 2016.
This Saturday is Gianna's Force of Hope Day at Chase Field and $10 of every ticket purchased through Groupmatics will go to the foundation being established by the Hurtado family.
Earlier this year KGUN9 spoke to Gianna's mother Lizette about their plans to start a non-profit to help families fighting DIPG (Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma), as well as funding research.
"Gianna always had a really big heart and worried about everybody else right up until her last days," Lizette said. "And so we know that this is something that she would have wanted and we just want to make her proud."
Gianna loved Star Wars and baseball, including the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks. Gianna even threw out the first pitch at a Tucson Saguaros last year.
Zach Perez with the Diamondbacks says the team did a similar fundraiser for Hollis Doherty, a 7-year-old from the Phoenix area who also lost his battle with DIPG.
Lizette says the family is still in the process of filling out the paperwork to set up the non-profit.
September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
If you can't buy tickets to the game, you can also donate to DIPG research through TGen. When you make your donation, add that it is for "Gianna DIPG."
