Blake Shelton Meets 6-Year-Old Brain Cancer Patient Harlie Bryant
Blake Shelton may be a consummate joker, but he has a heart of gold beneath all that laughter. He is also a man of his word, as he helped make a dream come true for Harlie Bryant, a 6-year-old stricken with an aggressive form of brain cancer. Shelton, who was alerted to the little girl's plight via Twitter, met with her at Owensboro's Big O Music Fest on Saturday (August 18).
Bryant, who was diagnosed with a softball-sized, cancerous brain tumor after an eye exam, has endured more in the past year of treatment than most people do in a lifetime. She has had surgeries and chemotherapy in effort to reduce the tumor size, yet has remained brave throughout. Her parents hope she can lead some semblance of a normal life. But this weekend, it was all about a one-on-one with the 'Honey Bee' singer.
"I'm gonna meet Blake Shelton," the adorable little girl gushed on camera to local news station 14 News beforehand.
"[Her father] Jamie just randomly tweeted something about Harlie to Blake, and there was like 8,000 retweets about it," her mother, Lisa, said, recalling their initial interaction with the country superstar. "He finally got a hold of it and that's when he said he wanted to see her."
Shelton kept his word, arranging a private meet and greet with Harlie at the festival. Harlie was left nearly speechless by meeting Shelton, but her ear-to-ear grin said it all! "Well, he went to go see us for a little bit, then we left. It was fun," she said, spoken like a starstruck 6-year-old who just met her favorite singer.
Meeting Blake Shelton was a lovely diversion from Harlie's realities. She has to endure an MRI every three months moving forward, and if the tumor doesn't grow any larger, she will be able to undergo proton-radiation treatment.
Lucky for her, she's got Blake Shelton and most of country music in her corner! We're pulling for you, Harlie.
Watch Harlie Bryant Talk About Meeting Blake Shelton