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SUCCESS STORIES

Starlight Children's Foundation, Room M34
RG8 0WY

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26 June 2013

As a much valued supporter, I am writing to ask if you would consider making a donation to Straight to help grant a wish for a seriously or terminally ill child living near you.

I know only too well how much a Starlight Wish can mean to a sick child. I shall never forget when a nurse sat me down and told me that my three tear old daughter Lucy had leukemia. As she uttered those devastating words time froze ... just like it does before a car crash. It was the worst thing that anyone could have said to me - my dad's brother died of childhood leukemia. I left the room to find them hooking my little girl up to drips, blood and chemo, and using a language of drugs and illness I didn't understand.

Two weeks later Lucy's hair started to fall out and I was told that the best thing to do was to shave it off. I couldn't stop my tears as her beautiful long locks fell to the floor.

As Lucy fought for her little life, she missed out on much of her precious childhood and had to grow up far too quickly. Lucy would even do blood tests on her dollies. You never think, or maybe you just can't bear to imagine, that it will be your child, grandchild, nephew or niece that is struck down, but if it happens, in an instant your life is changed forever.

When Lucy was first diagnosed I spent weeks in hospitals with her. We tried to keep everything as normal as possible for our eight year old son Adam but it was impossible to hide the frightening truth from him. Our world had been torn apart and the whole family suffered. When Lucy was given sleepy drugs (general anesthetic) she would often ask for Adam. He was scared of the needles, tubes and drips and yet would bravely hold her hand as she went to sleep. He also missed out on three birthdays in a row because each time Lucy caught an infection and was rushed to hospital. Over time he became more withdrawn.

Whilst Lucy was fighting her illness, Starlight came into our lives to grant a magical wish to our little girl. Just choosing a wish took a lot of thought and helped to distract her from the endless rounds of chemo, lumbar punctures and blood transfusions. With all her heart, Lucy wished to be a fairy and have a magical tea party: she had never been allowed to go to parties because of the risk of infection.

Soon a date was set and plans were put in motion. Over the next six months as she battled her illness, Lucy made lots of fun decisions and her spirits were lifted by all the ...