(NewsNation Now) — A TikTok star helped raise $100,000 so a St. Louis girl with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome could receive treatment.
“We both were at a place of just feeling completely helpless,” Heather McCarty, whose 10-year-old daughter Lyla suffers from the condition, said on “NewsNation Prime.” “With Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, there’s literally nothing we can do to make her feel better when she (in) excruciating pain, and then on top of that, we couldn’t get her treatment.”
Then, TikTok star Charlie Rocket reached out. Rocket has more than 7 million followers on his platforms. He spends his time driving around the U.S. with his team in the Dream Machine RV, helping people across the country.
“I was somewhat skeptical, because I had never heard of a person named Charlie Rocket,” said Derek McCarthy, Lyla’s father. “And I said it is worth looking into.”
Rocket’s team surprised Lyla with her dream come true, a day working at her own bakery. The video caught the attention of many who wanted to help her receive treatment.
“It was beyond anything that we could have imagined,” Heather said. “And it came with so much more than the dollar amount. It came with the feeling that not only we weren’t alone, but that Lyla wasn’t alone. And really, the greatest gift we got was hope.”
“It really just makes me feel amazing that people that I don’t even know will be willing to help me even if they don’t know me,” Lyla said.
NewsNation affiliate KTVI contributed to this report.