Alyssa Ferguson, a Ridge Point High School student who continued to put others’ needs first despite battling a terminal illness.

Ferguson lived in the Sienna community and attended Baines Middle School when she began experiencing headaches. When she was 12 years old, she was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a fast-growing brain tumor and Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that predisposes those who have it to an increased risk of developing cancer.

Even in the midst of her own battle with cancer, Ferguson acted with amazing generosity and a spirit of giving. She used her wish from the Make-a-Wish Foundation to dig a well in a village in Zimbabwe that did not have access to clean water.

Ferguson passed away in January 2017 while a freshman at Ridge Point High School. The Alyssa Ferguson World Changers Fund was established so that her legacy continues through the funding of new water wells and the repair or replacement of existing wells. Eight wells have now been dug because of the mission she started.