'Unimaginable, Unforgettable Joy'

IN THEIR OWN WORDS ...

By Jessica Liburdi

Two cheerful women greeted me in the lobby of Boston Children’s Hospital, where I was being treated. One handed me a stuff animal. My nervousness melted; this was a different than the hospital meetings I had grown used to in my six years. These people were wish granters.

They knelt next to me. “If you could make a wish,” one asked, “where you would go or who would you meet?”

“To see my Grandma,” I replied. I had a desire to spend a week together with my family, the thought of a trip to see my grandmother in North Carolina seemed unimaginable. However, the wish granters saw a wish much bigger than I could ever imagine. After learning about my favorite movies and characters, my wish was determined to spend a week at Walt Disney World® Resort.

I had been in a constant battle dealing with a birth defect – I was born without an esophagus — and related complications that would end up requiring 11 major surgeries, rehabilitation, and numerous hospitalizations. Travel to me meant trips back and forth from Latham to Boston. These out-of-state hospital stays would separate our family — most painfully me from my twin sister, Angela.

Spending a week with my family, my sister, without medical treatments — and at Disney? I could not imagine. Yet these women were going to grant me my wish.

That trip to Disney happened nearly 28 years ago. I do not hold many distinct memories of age 6. But that wish will never be forgotten. Flying to Florida first class. A day spent at each of the theme parks. Staying at Give Kids the World Village®, where at the end of the day we were greeted with souvenirs in our villa. Every moment was packed with surprises and a gift.

It remains one of my limited childhood memories not clouded by the bright lights and harsh sounds of a hospital. I was treated like the most important little girl as we skipped lines and got called onto stages. The best part: Sharing it all with my twin sister. Angela and I missed many milestones together, but not this one.

I am beyond grateful for the social worker who referred me for my wish. It provided my family with a respite from my family’s focus being my condition. We could focus on being a family.

Today, I am a thriving 34-year-old. My experiences have led me to become a social worker for adults and children diagnosed with developmental disabilities.

And recently I became a wish granter for Make-A-Wish Northeast New York. All the memories of my first wish have come flooding back. I can’t wait to bring the same unimaginable, unforgettable joy to a child I experienced.

Jessica Liburdi is a wish alum and wish granter for Make-A-Wish Northeast New York. This story originally appeared in the Spring/Summer 2021 edition of Wishmaker magazine.