WBTV reports family and friends are rallying together to help raise money for two-year-old Hunter Tallent, one of several people who became sick with E. coli after attending the North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh. The state traced the outbreak back to a livestock barn at the fairgrounds.

The family is holding the fundraiser to help raise money to cover Hunter’s medical bills from his hospital stay. The family says the state has not stepped in to help.

The event is called Hunter’s Angels and will take place Saturday at 10 a.m. through noon Sunday at Cole Creek Arena in Casar.

In Pennsylvania, three-year-old Avala Pierce of Chambersburg contracted an E. coli-related illness after a visit to Cowans Gap this summer.

She spent weeks in the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, followed by a month on kidney dialysis. She has ongoing seizures, has suffered a stroke, and has some mobility issues, prompting Mercersburg campers to help out.

Kent and Dee Saunders, owners of Saunderosa Campground, Little Cove Road, Mercersburg, along with their campers, held an auction and other fundraisers during the camping season to raise money to help offset the costs of Pierce’s illness.

In late summer and through the fall, the Saunders were able to give the family $1,000.

The child and her family were invited to the annual campground meal Dec. 17.

After the meal, Santa Claus paid a visit, during which the campers presented the family with an additional $400 to help with Christmas.

Cowan’s Gap will be open for all activities in 2012, according to a Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources spokesman.

Routine E. coli testing at Cowans Gap State Park has resumed, after a period of intensified testing for the source of bacteria that the Pennsylvania Department of Health said sickened at least 18 people.

Although the source of E. coli O157 at the 1,085-acre Fulton County park wasn’t found, state officials believe it originated from human feces. They plan to use signs and handouts to emphasize proper hygiene when bathing and swimming.

An engineering study done in conjunction with testing found DCNR needed to upgrade one of two below-grade wells at Cowans Gap State Park.