ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A month ago, a local food truck owner received a life-changing diagnosis, causing her to shut down her beloved business for the foreseeable future. On Sunday, the small business community came together to show their unwavering support for her in a big way.
About a month ago, Michelle Gutiérrez, the owner of Wow Wow Lemonade, received a rare cancer diagnosis, forcing her to close her business for the time being. “I wasn’t feeling good, and I thought maybe I just had a little shock to find out that there is a large mass in my abdomen, it is a tumor, and it is cancerous,” explained Gutiérrez.
With no family history of cancer, Gutiérrez says this news came as a big shock. “I’ve had to pause working on the bus or running the bus because this is my full-time job,” she emphasized. “It’s very scary that I can’t continue to make a living, and also, bills are coming in faster than we can count them.”
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To help take some of the weight off her shoulders, all of the businesses that just so happened to open up alongside Wow Wow Lemonade eight years ago came together, donating a portion of their sales to Gutiérrez’s medical bills…