By the time Matthew woke up on the morning of his wish day, so much had already happened to bring him to that moment.
He was born with a rare genetic disorder that has caused skeletal abnormalities and paralysis, mental disabilities and reduced function of his heart, lungs, liver and spleen. As a newborn, doctors told his parents that he might not even make it through the night, and he’s been in and out of the hospital since he was two and a half years old.
Because of hospital restrictions, his family hadn’t all been in a room together in more than three years. Most of Matthew’s interactions with his loved ones, limited to one visitor at a time, had been through a phone screen – leaving him incredibly isolated. |