BATON ROUGE, LA (BRPROUD) – After the tragic death of a beloved sports reporter, her sister is helping keep her dream of helping children come true.
It’s been seven months since the tragic death of local sports reporter Carley McCord. Now her sister, Kaleigh McCord-Pedersen is helping keep her spirit alive.
“I really truly feel she has guided me to do this,” Pedersen said.
In her short 30 years, Carley touched the lives of many, including Matt Moscona, a popular Baton Rouge sports radio host. Moscona’s son Drew was born with a rare genetic disease.
“He just turned six years old, but we found prenatally that he had a condition called congenital diaphragmatic hernia. They’re not really sure what his ceiling is, but I’ve always said we’ll never put a limitation on Drew. We’ll let him be the best drew that he can be,” Moscona said.
Carley worked for Moscona for two years and quickly developed a close bond with Drew. Before she passed she told her sister that she wanted to help raise money for the Moscona’s to send Drew to a school for children with special needs.
“He was kind of like the bionic kid because there were wires everywhere. He was in a stroller with an oxygen tank and wires all attached to him and I took him to Guaranty to see everybody at work. Carley was there working in that studio. She saw Drew and just jumped up and came and grabbed him and scooped him up and I was like hold on,” Moscona laughed. “Didn’t want her to pull out a tube or something, but I’ve always said that was so her because she was fearless. I’m glad that her love for Drew in that moment came through, and I remember that so vividly, and especially now I’m so thankful I do.”
It’s that bond that inspired Kaleigh to finish what Carley started.
“We picked Matt to read at the funeral, and as I was texting the Mosconas it was like she was telling me hey don’t forget I said drew Moscona,” Pedersen said.
Carley’s final Instagram post was lyrics from a song saying ‘only rainbows after rain, the sun will come again’. That post inspired Pedersen to named the organization Carley’s Little Angels. It raises money for children with rare medical conditions like Drew’s.
“Even though she is not here, and we are so sad that she is not, and we’re missing her everyday, I’m just so happy that she is going to be able to do that. And I’m happy to be able to use Little Louanne to be able to fulfill that,” said Pederson.
Pedersen owns a clothing company called Little Louanne. She created a special rainbow themed line in Carley’s memory. All proceeds from the line go to the Carley’s Little Angles organization.
So far she has raised nearly $4,000. Drew Moscona will be the first recipient, granting Carley wish.
“I can’t wait to write them that check. We’re going to have the Moscona family choose another family this coming year,” said Pedersen.
“Mrs. Karen told me Carley is helping Drew go to schoo,l and I love that thought and love the thought also that Carley would be excited about that too,” said Moscona.
Pederson said she hopes the organization continues to grow so that Carley can keep bringing rainbows after rain.
“She was one of those people that could walk into a room and put a big smile on your face, so I hope for many years to come she can continue to put smiles on people’s faces.”
If you would like to order from the Carley’s Little Rainbows clothing line click here.