Mom donates her brain surgery money to ailing 11-year-old neighbour

A young mother of two in Woonana, New South Wales, Australia, is paying it forward and donating money she raised for her own brain surgery to a young neighbour also needing a brain operation.

Jamie-Lee Hall, 24, has Moyamoya disease, an uncommon neurological condition in which arteries at the base of her brain are blocked. The disease puts her at risk for strokes and/or paralysis.

In 2009, Hall required life-saving surgery. An anonymous dying man and the Live Love Laugh Foundation donated a combined $9,500 to ensure Hall received the operation she needed.

Last year, Hall received news that she'd need to go under the knife again, this time to prevent a massive strength, and was facing $50,000 in medical bills.

After seeking financial help from family and friends, Hall learned that a specialist at Prince of Wales Hospital was offering to do the surgery for free. So the young mom decided to forward the funds already raised to her 11-year-old neighbour, Connor, who urgently requires an operation to remove a brain tumour.

"Me and Connor have always got along because I was diagnosed when I was his age, so I had the same sort of childhood that he's having," Hall told the Illawarra Mercury.

"So, the minute they said we wouldn't have to pay, I said I wanted him to have the money," Hall said. "He needs it more than I do now."

Hall added that she hopes her young children, Maddison, 18 months, and Mark, 3, learn by example to be generous to those in need.

"I think everyone should help someone in need if they can," she said.

"When I was younger, everyone did the same thing for me by raising money for me to get a wheelchair, and I want to show my kids that they can do the same thing."