VERO BEACH — Halee Doud is counting down the days until her birthday.

She turns 9 years old Oct. 8, but her P.O. Box has already been filled with more than 100 cards and packages from well-wishers in Vero Beach and far beyond.

"It makes me feel happy and I love it," the clever, magnetic child said, holding the thick stack of letters and packages she has received so far.

"I like inspiring notes."

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Halee and her mom, Tabitha Doud, had an idea to reach out via social media, asking community members to inundate the soon-to-be 9-year-old with messages.

"She is in the hospital a lot and she is often sick," Doud said. "I can only do so much as a single parent. This kind of lets her know that there's a whole bunch of other people in the world besides me."

The post was shared more than 300 times.

As much as it's driving her crazy, Halee is waiting to open everything until the morning of Oct. 8.

"I don't want to," Halee groaned. "I'm going to wake mom up!"

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Send a card:

Halee Doud

P.O. Box 651517

Vero Beach, FL 32965

Halee's health problems began when she was a baby. She began screaming in her sleep at 2 months old, prompting doctors to schedule an MRI when Halee was 5 months old.

They found a lesion on her brain and a lifetime of medical battles was launched. Halee has an irregular heartbeat, known as an arrhythmia; digestive issues that require a feeding tube; asthma; severe allergies to common foods; and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, known as ADHD.

Geneticists have discovered two abnormal chromosome variants.

"They believe it's an underlying genetic disease they just don't have an answer for yet," Doud said. "She's not a textbook case… You have to think outside the box with her."

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Doud said all the medical bills add up. The mother-daughter duo have lived in a motel for the past year.

Her closest medical appointments are in Melbourne, but most doctor visits require a trip to children’s hospitals in West Palm Beach and Miami.

"It's very expensive," Doud said. "We just make (it) by."

Halee's medical battles have not impeded her optimism and seem to have only strengthened the child's desire to give back, despite bullying that prompted her mother to begin homeschooling.

Halee has donated her own money to charities and collected toiletries and toys for SafeSpace, a non-profit serving victims of domestic violence.

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"She's always thinking about other people. And I asked her one day, I said, 'Why do you do that?' And she said, 'I'm just a kid, but it doesn't matter if I'm just a kid. I can still make a difference,'" Doud said.

"I love making people happy because it makes me happy," Halee chimed in. "I know sometimes life can be a little tough, but I like making people feel like they're loved and that they have someone in this world who cares."

Halee, who is on the autism spectrum, loves animals. Her favorite is the arctic wolf. The mother-daughter duo has two rescue dogs — Lady and Gigi.

She loves to read and won a competition by completing 30 chapter books in six weeks. She enjoys singing and bowling and her favorite color is blue. For her birthday, it'll be vanilla cake with multi-colored frosting.

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Halee returned home Tuesday after a cardiac procedure in Miami. She said it's sometimes hard going to the doctor, but she's used to it.

"I know that God's watching me and that he's going to protect me and that even though I may not have a lot, God will still take care of me," Halee said.

"He always has," Doud said.

"And he always will," Halee said, smiling up at her mom.

"Oh!" she suddenly remembered. "And a thousand times a thousand is a million."

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