At 15 months old, Joshua had his first liver transplant. He made great progress for more than 10 years, but in 2016 his body began to reject the liver. After months of hospitalizations and biopsies, he was once again placed on the transplant list. 
 
In 2019, the family was called about a possible liver match. Unfortunately, doctors found an infection in Joshua’s blood, and he was unable to accept the liver. As his condition worsened, he spent most of his time in the hospital away from his siblings and close friends.  
 
Finally, in 2020 Joshua’s family received a call at 1am about another possible match. Joshua went straight into surgery and after 12 hours – his liver transplant was a success. Once he was released, he experienced further complications and internal bleeding from the procedure and once again had to be hospitalized. At this time, Joshua was introduced to Make-A-Wish.

Timing of wishes is of the essence, as research shows children are most powerfully impacted if they are able to imagine, plan, and realize their wish during treatment.
 
“This wish would mean a lot to Joshua,” Areli said. “Because he isn’t able to go out to public places because he is on immunosuppression, and he can’t even receive visits from his closest family.” 
 
Joshua’s siblings are excited too. They have been extra careful to keep Joshua safe, and also have been unable to leave the house much. 
 
“I would just like to thank you all for granting this wish,” Areli said. “I wish I could provide more for him but unfortunately I can’t because we have 7 kids including Joshua. Joshua has had a very bumpy road for recovery; he still receives extensive therapy at home due to him not being able to feel a certain part of both hands. I do believe this will help Joshua with his therapy as doctor assures that is only temporary and his feeling will be back as long as he moves them as much as possible. I also believe this will help take his mind off things.”