Five-year-old Owen is a wild, energetic little boy from Greybull. He loves riding bikes, swimming, exploring outside, and superheroes like Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Thor. He also cherishes his Hot Wheels and monster trucks, enjoys playing with bugs, and all the typical boy things. Surrounded by a loving family and a tight-knit church community, Owen would find comfort in those around him as well as watching his favorite superheroes on TV, while he battled cancer.

Owen was diagnosed with leukemia when he was just  2½ years old. Along with other symptoms, he had been having intermittent fevers for a couple of weeks that weren’t connected to any other illness. Owen was taken to the hospital, where he had an X-ray and blood drawn.

“They sent us home while we waited for results. We hadn't even left the parking lot when they called and told us to check into the ER immediately. His white blood cell count was extremely high, his red blood cells were very low, and his hemoglobin was dangerously low. The doctor told me he was concerned it could be cancer,” says Owen’s mom, Rebecca.

After his ER visit, Owen was transferred to Children's Hospital Colorado, where he was diagnosed with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL). Fortunately, there were no cancer cells in his spinal fluid, which meant he was considered standard risk and did not need a bone marrow transplant. The family spent five weeks in Colorado during Owen’s initial treatment; however, he would still undergo nearly 2½ years of treatment, delivered in various stages.

“Owen rang his bell in February 2026. He was diagnosed at 2½ years old and completed treatment at age 5, meaning he spent roughly half his life undergoing cancer treatment. And because of his compromised immune system, we spent a lot of time at home watching movies and reading books,” says Rebecca.

Those days spent at home watching movies would serve as inspiration for his wish granted by Make-A-Wish Wyoming. Additionally, before his diagnosis, one of the last things they did as a family was attend the county fair in Powell. Owen loved the small carnival rides and all of the animals. It was one of his favorite experiences, and it sparked his love for rides and amusement parks. Pair that with his love for superheroes and the characters he watched in the movies, and you have the perfect wish: to go to Disneyland.

After experiencing and loving his first plane ride, Owen was captivated by the rides, characters, colors, and food at Disneyland. His favorite rides quickly became the roller coaster-style attractions. As a bit of an adrenaline junkie, Owen chased every ride he could – and that he was tall enough for.

Despite all of the rides, nothing could prepare Owen for the thrill of meeting his favorite characters in person. He first met Loki in the Marvel area, and a Disney cast member asked if there was a specific superhero Owen wanted to meet. Owen immediately said "Iron Man," and within minutes, Iron Man appeared for a personal meet-and-greet.

Owen was immediately starstruck. Meeting his superhero was more exciting than he could have imagined. He was also excited to meet Spider-Man, Woody and Buzz from Toy Story, Mickey Mouse, and many other Disney characters that roamed the park.

Owen and his family also enjoyed the pool at their resort, the beach, a night at Medieval Times, and a day at SeaWorld. Yet, one of their favorite experiences came on the last day of the trip, when they had breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen. The family enjoyed an incredible breakfast buffet brought to life by the many Disney characters who hosted it.

Rebecca shares, “The kids loved meeting all of the characters at breakfast, and it was the perfect sendoff on our final day,” but there was one other moment that stood out as much as this breakfast on their trip.

“One especially meaningful moment happened while we were waiting near a ride. I started talking with another parent, and it turned out her son had also survived the same leukemia Owen had. The man came over and spoke with Owen, gave him a high five, and encouraged him,” says Rebecca.

The man had also been diagnosed with leukemia around the same age as Owen and was now in his 40s, living a normal life decades later. The entire conversation was profound to Owen’s parents and sparked hope for their own son. Rebecca noted that the chances of randomly meeting someone who had received the exact same diagnosis and treatment at nearly the same age as Owen were remarkable.

“Because Owen was so young when he was diagnosed, he never fully understood everything that was happening to him. But now he has finished treatment, rang his bell, and no longer has to take chemotherapy medication. This was the first true family vacation we had taken since the kids were born. It felt like a hopeful, happy ending to Owen's cancer journey,” says Rebecca.

Owen will enjoy a summer full of his favorite boyish activities and will start a homeschool curriculum this fall. Though he will continue to attend a survivorship clinic for the next five years, his family has hope that this is the beginning of Owen’s long-awaited cancer-free childhood.

Your support is the reason Make-A-Wish Wyoming can restore hope and grant life-changing wishes for kids like Owen. Learn more and join us in helping Wyoming wish kids at wish.org/Wyoming.