I wish to go to Hawaii
Allison, wish granted in 2000
cancer
A Wish Never Fades
When wish alum Allison Younger was 10 years old, she began having fierce headaches. The kind that take your breath away.
At first, the doctors thought it was eye strain, so she was fitted for glasses. That helped initially, but after a few short weeks, the headaches returned, and other severe symptoms started to pile on.
What was supposed to be a quick trip to the doctor on an otherwise unremarkable Saturday turned into a much longer ordeal. “I don’t really remember much from that day,” said Allison. “I just remember wanting to feel better.”
In a span of 24 hours, Allison went from the doctor's waiting room couch to the surgery table. The days, months and years that followed were filled with countless medical appointments, tests, procedures, four brain surgeries and chemotherapy. The culprit: a cancerous brain tumor that refused to give up. But, then again… so did Allison.
With friends and family by her side, Allison bravely endured what most can only imagine. That was 21 years ago. Now a wife and a mom of two, Allison’s perspective on that period in her life is colored with pain and sorrow, but also silver linings – Make-A-Wish being one of them.
Two years into her cancer treatments, Allison wished to go to Hawaii for a dolphin encounter. With her family by her side, they left their worries behind for one week and had the most amazing time reconnecting as a family.
When asked why she wanted to go to Hawaii, she said, “I was always cold…in fact, I’m still cold.” Many may not know that a side effect of chemotherapy is nerve damage which can cause cancer patients and survivors to feel cold.
That trip was the medicine that Allison needed to continue her fight. Years later it proved to be the inspiration for her niece’s wish to go to Hawaii.
“Her trip was amazing,” said Allison’s brother-in-law about his daughter’s wish. “It was a chance for us to celebrate where she was at and really hold onto it because we knew more was coming.”
Both of these wish trips live on not only in the pages of trip photo albums but now in acts of service.
In 2000, Allison (left) realized her wish to go to Hawaii. Little did she know that her wish would inspire her niece Mara's (right) decision to request the exact same wish!
Bryan is a Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington trustee, and Heather, Allison’s sister, is a wish-granting volunteer.
“Ever since my daughter [Mara] passed away, I knew I wanted to be involved, but I was waiting for the right season in my life,” she said. “I wanted to be in a space where I could honor her, without that being front and center. I wanted it to be in a space where I could be part of other wish kid’s and families’ stories, with my daughter on the periphery.”
Heather credits another sibling, her sister Michelle, for advancing her decision to become a wish-granting volunteer. It was a few months after Michelle became a volunteer that Heather decided it was time to join the ranks. Now the two are granting their first wish together for none other than their nephew, Grant!
“Make-A-Wish really does make a difference,” said Bryan. “You're changing the outlook and the future for that family, and often in cases a larger community that we see come together around kids with critical illnesses. That impact is powerful to see.”
Allison adds, “It gives kids that are sick hope for a brighter future.”
And that dose of hope is contagious!
“There's many more things to come for me with my wish-granting journey, but the joy that you get to witness is just something that you really can't describe unless your part of it and it just keeps you coming back for more," said Heather.