HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2011-05-12, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2011.Blyth girl returns from her dream Disneyland trip
Here comes the sun(shine)
Blyth’s Mikayla Ansley just returned from the trip of a
lifetime and volunteers from The Sunshine Foundation, the
organization responsible for sending the Ansleys on the trip,
recently paid the family a visit with the help of the
foundation’s Sunshine Bear. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
It may have been a long road
getting here, but with just one
follow-up treatment in the last 15
months, Blyth’s Mikayla Ansley is
well on the road to recovery.
After being diagnosed with a rare
form of childhood ocular cancer
called Retinoblastoma in 2008 just
before her first birthday, Mikayla
had to endure numerous procedures
and treatments in the coming years.
These procedures culminated in
2009 when her left eye was removed
and she was hospitalized two weeks
later with a blood infection.
Since then, however, while
attending check-up appointments
regularly, Mikayla has only required
one follow-up treatment in the last
15 months. As part of this success,
Mikayla was granted a wish from
The Sunshine Foundation that came
as a blessing to her family and a
dream come true for her.
In March Mikayla, her parents
Katie and Mike, and her now-13-
month-old brother Rodney,
embarked on a two-week fantasy
trip to Disneyland in Florida. The
trip was completed last week with a
visit from Sunshine Foundation
volunteers and the Sunshine Bear,
who Mikayla instantly found a
friend in.
Donning her red princess dress
from her time in Florida, Mikayla
greeted the volunteers, thanking
them for her trip and pouring over
pictures and videos from the
family’s time in Orlando.
The wheels began turning to send
Mikayla to Disneyland in November
of 2010, when the application was
first submitted. Katie says that with
some help from the nurses at SickKids Hospital, the application wassubmitted and the requirements
were met and in January the Ansleys
found out that they would be going
to Florida in a few short months.
The Ansleys headed down early,
as Katie’s parents were in Fort
Myers, Florida at the time, so they
spent a week there before making
the trip to Orlando to make
Mikayla’s dream come true.
Initially, Mikayla didn’t name
Disneyland specifically as her
dream destination. As a big fan of
Disney’s Tinkerbell, Mikayla said
that she wanted to see the castle
Tinkerbell flies over (the Disney
Magic Kingdom) and secondly, she
wanted to be a princess in a red
dress.
Both of these wishes came true as
Mikayla spent six days at
Disneyland where she saw the castle
every day and her princess wish
came true at a very special tea party
later in the trip.
When Mikayla heard the news
that her wish had been approved, she
says she was “excited” and when the
family actually got to Florida, she
said her feelings were upgraded tobeing “very excited”.What followed were six days of
pure enjoyment for Mikayla and
feelings of hope and relief for her
parents, who had watched her
endure countless procedures and
treatments that could be generously
described as the opposite of a dream
come true.
“Having the opportunity to
experience the feeling of trading in
years of I.V. poles and heartache for
a crown was an unforgettable sense
of accomplishment,” Katie said.
“For six days Mikayla got to live on
top of the world, jumping and
clapping with excitement, having
the time of her life. I will forever
remember these moments.”
Over the course of the trip,
Mikayla and her family attended
several parades and during every
one, Katie said, Mikayla laughed
and danced from start to finish.
“She was the only one dancing,”
Katie said.
And although there were plenty of
highlights over the next several
days, it was a tea party held in
THE EDITOR,
I realize that in this day and age,
that it is maybe hard to sell local
newspapers. But after reading and
seeing last week’s issue, the picture
on page two is totally disrespectful
and unacceptable, especially for the
families who live and have lived in
the community for a lifetime.
I know there is lack of respect out
there these days, but I thought our
local newspaper had more. We all
have family crises and don’t need
them published in the newspaper
like this (especially pictures).
What is our small community
coming to?
Dorothea Ducharme.
Letter to the Editor
By Shawn LoughlinThe Citizen
Writer disappointed
Continued on page 17
Habitat for Humanity
Comes to Brussels
We need your help!
Be a builder in one of the following ways:
- by being a member of the Brussels steering committee
- by making your financial contribution
- by donating gift-in-kind materials
- by being a volunteer on the building site
Habitat houses are a hand up not a hand out.
To join the Brussels team contact either:
John McDonald 519-887-6277 or Gerry Exel 519-887-9616
(This ad was paid for by a supporter of Habitat for Humanity Huron County)
Donations may be made to Brussels Build and sent to:
Habitat for Humanity Huron at Box 453 Goderich N7A 4C7
This build will be dedicated to the memory of Henry Exel,
a valued member of the Board of Habitat for Humanity Huron County