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Nonprofit Offers Family Free Flight for Son's Cancer Treatment

The 6-year-old is unable to fly commercial due to his severely compromised immune system

A generous donor has offered a private plane to a family whose 6-year-old son needs cancer treatment at a hospital over 2,000 miles away.

Reef Carneson, a boy who beat an aggressive form of leukemia at 5 months old, developed cancer on his scalp and face at the end of 2014. He has been hospitalized with infections several times during the past few weeks.

With his worsening condition baffling doctors in LA, his family was desperate to see a team of specialists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital.

Since NBC4 aired the Carneson family's story on Tuesday, the family got several offers for transportation to help Reef. But the family chose a Texas-based nonproit who saw Reef's story on Facebook and offered a private plane for free to fly the family to Ohio.

"We were just overjoyed. It was the first night’s sleep that we had gotten in a while," Reef's father Ryan Carneson said.

The Carnesons moved from South Africa to Los Angeles three years ago to ensure Reef received the lifesaving medical treatment he needed.

The boy has a severely compromised immune system and is unable to fly commercial due to germs. Private planes and an RV were offered to assist the family in their trip from California to Ohio.

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Sky Hope, a Texas-based nonprofit, saw the Carneson's story on Facebook and wanted to help.

"He’s a fighter. You can tell that," said Robin Eissler, chairman and president of Sky Hope. "If all we need to do is give him a flight to give him more of a chance that’s all we need."

The charity connects private pilots and corporate jets with people in need. Eissler, who had a sick child of her own, started the program 10 years ago.

The family thanked Sky Hope for their generosity via Skype on Wednesday.

"We are so, so grateful," Reef’s mother, Lydia Carneson said.

While Reef’s parents are relieved he’ll get desperately needed medical treatment, his family told NBC4 all the 6-year-old can think about is seeing snow for the first time.

Reef and his family will catch their private flight Sunday morning out of Long Beach. They will spend a week at Cincinnati Children's Hospital meeting with cancer specialists. They hope to return with a plan that LA doctors can help implement to get Reef's treatment back on track.

To learn more about Reef's battle, visit the Facebook page here.

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