Thousands of people sung in Reading Saturday to help make a terminally ill girl's wish come true.
Delaney "Laney" Brown, who is battling a rare form of leukemia, had one wish this holiday season - to hear Christmas carolers sing.
And some of the over 45,000 followers of the 8-year-old's Facebook page fulfilled her dream.
While Laney stayed inside, a crowd of an estimated 6,000 people gathered outside her family's home on the 400 block of Chestnut Street in West Reading to sing holiday tunes for about 60 minutes.
During the sing-along, a photo of the girl - her eyes closed and face covered with an oxygen mask- was posted to the Team Laney Facebook page. Alongside the image of Laney with her thumbs-up in appreciation is the message: "I can hear you now!!! Love you!
Y102 radio led carolers in renditions of Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Joy to the World and more songs beginning at 7 p.m.
"We are grateful beyond words...to see the community rally around Laney during her entire struggle and now during this heartbreaking time in our lives," the Brown family said in a statement.
Relay for Life of Western Berks and community officials worked together to organize the Caroling for Laney event.
In May 2013 Laney was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with monosomy 7 - about 10 children in the U.S. each year receive the same diagnosis, according to the American Cancer Society event page.
Organizers asked the public to refrain from bringing any gifts and instead recommends anyone interested in helping support the Brown family can donate to the Team Laney fundraising website.
