What should have been a dream come true turned into a nightmare for a young cancer survivor at the Buffalo Bills game against the San Francisco 49ers.
Mia DeCamilla of Rochester, N.Y., and her family were attending the game on Sunday night at snowy Highmark Stadium when one Bills fan got a bit too rambunctious in the upper deck.
According to the family, a man roughly six-feet tall shoved Mia, causing the young San Fran fan to fall from her seat.
Mia’s family told local CBS affiliate WIVB that she was not physically hurt during the altercation but was emotionally shaken, which caused them to leave the game early.
Eight-year-old Mia has battled and beaten liver cancer twice after relapsing in May of last year.
While Mia lives in Upstate New York, she became a 49ers fan because of her father, Mike, after watching games in the hospital while undergoing treatment.
“Me and my dad in the hospital, we’ll watch football together, and then when I come home, sometimes for breaks, like in the hospital, when I had cancer, I will sit down and just relax and watch football all day, that’s what I like and how I made my team,” Mia said.
The family posted several photos and videos from the game, with Mia proudly holding a sign reading, “I beat cancer.”
“In the car, when we were driving there, I was saying like, ‘Are we there yet?’ I was too excited. I was full of energy,” Mia said.
The incident occurred in section 312, which was unshovelled after the Western New York region was hit by a large burst of lake effect snow in the days leading up to the game.
“He said, ‘I’m going to push through all these Niner fans,” Mike DeCamilla said of the man. “So, he actually bumped me and my son a little bit and then got past me and pushed her, almost slid off the stairs and hit her like side on the chairs.”
After the incident, the family said that it was so uncomfortable that they left the game early.
“The guy purposely walked through and was pushing through people,” Mike said. “I get that it’s busy and hectic, but he had to be six-foot and she is less than 100 pounds.”
In a post on Facebook, Mike said that the family also spoke with police after the incident.
“Sadly, we left earlier than planned. Yes, the Niners are losing, but unfortunately we had to deal with the police because a drunk Bills fan decides it was cool to pass my husband and I and pushed our 8 year old daughter DeCamilla (down the stairs, in section 312!),” he wrote.
“If you are this type of Bills Mafia fan please unfollow our family now!!!!! Also, I hope the a**hole who thought it was cool to push a kid that stood in the cold with her cancer free sign was so worth your win!”
Mia said she won’t be back at Highmark Stadium anytime soon to catch another game.
“We don’t want to go back because I felt uncomfortable and I just don’t feel ready to go there anymore,” Mia said.
“I know that there’s competitiveness and whatnot, but there’s a point where it’s a family event,” Mike said.
“I just want to help and not be rude,” Mia added. “I’m just there to be a nice girl and just have fun.”
The story went viral on social media, catching the attention of former NFL star Antonio Brown.
While Brown has been known for his controversial opinions and posts on social media, he expressed interest in finding Mia and offered his help to her and her family.
Brown also said that he would FaceTime Mia on Tuesday after getting in contact with the family.
A GoFundMe to help Mia’s family has raised more than $22,000 as of Tuesday morning.