Chicago community unites to support MasterChef Junior Star Ben Watkins once again after he was diagnosed with a rare disease.
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Erica Parise / FOX
The young cook, who lost his parents in 2017, was diagnosed with angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma a few days after turning 13, according to a family statement. AFH is an extremely rare soft tissue tumor that has occurred only in a small number of children and young adults. He is currently undergoing treatment at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
The devastating diagnosis comes nearly three years after Watkins’ parents died in a domestic violence incident that led to a 2017 murder-suicide, police told the Chicago Tribune. His father shot and killed his mother, and then himself.
At the time, Watkins had just finished season six of Fox’s MasterChef Junior. When the season finally aired in 2018, people across the country fell in love with Watkins, who was 11 at the time, and helped raise $ 30,000 as a trust fund for Watkins.
The GoFundMe campaign, known as # Love4Ben, is now being revived by her grandmother and uncle, who care for Watkins to help cover the cost of her medical bills and future education.
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Related: People writer misled by MasterChef Junior contestants: “I couldn’t believe kids cooking that food”
When Watkins appeared as one of the young contestants on MasterChef Junior, He captivated the judges with his culinary skills and finished in the top 18. His love of cooking comes from his late parents, who owned a barbecue restaurant, and because the science behind cooking coincides with his aspirations to become engineer someday. “It’s more reliable than being a chef,” Watkins told the Chicago Tribune in 2017.
© Erica Parise / FOX
Ben Watkins was recently diagnosed with angiomatoid fibrous histiocytoma, according to his family.
“Despite all of Ben’s trials and tribulations, he remains positive,” the family said in the updated GoFundMe, “and he hopes to return to the kitchen and pursue his dream of becoming an engineer.”
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