For our family, the holidays were always a special time. That was until my son, Enzo, was diagnosed with a brain tumor, and we had to spend them in the hospital. There, the holidays took on a new face – one of despair and sadness.

Instead of spending on gifts, we were focused on paying our medical bills. Rather than participating in our annual tradition of driving around the city with Enzo to see all of the holiday lights, we were standing at the window of a fluorescent hospital room trying to imagine them from our memory. A time when we once baked festive cookies together to the songs of season, we spent hours scrolling YouTube videos of others doing it themselves.

Through it all, we had to watch our child suffer with pain, fear and confusion. We felt a constant pressure to stay positive – and ensure we made up for all of those holiday traditions that we were missing. In a time when we wanted to rest and recuperate the most, we had to work that much harder to make it all OK. 

The worst part was realizing that the greatest gift we could ever give our child was the one thing we couldn’t: a cure.

We learned a lot during that time – about ourselves and each other, not least of which was our level of resilience and strength, as well as our appreciation for the things we once took for granted. It was a hard time for us, but we got through it with the help of each other and the hope that Make-A-Wish® provided.

Wish families overwhelmingly agree that a wish experience brings much-needed relief from the traumatic stress of watching their child face a critical illness. It truly is a gift unlike any other. So during this holiday season, my biggest wish is that more families get that same hope, relief and joy that my family did because of Make-A-Wish.

Please, will you make a donation today to provide more life-changing wish experiences for kids and their families this holiday season? These wishes really do give crucial support for families – and they can even improve health outcomes for wish kids like Enzo.

Thank you so much for bringing transformational hope and strength to my family and so many other families just like mine.

Shiloh
Enzo’s mom