Stories
Every dream has a story...
The wishes supported by the Angels Anonymous Connection all begin with a story. Each individual that needs our support comes to us with a unique journey that brought them to this juncture. Their stories help us put the wish into action and we do our best to pay attention to every last detail for our wish recipients. These stories are what drive us to keep doing what we do. These stories contain a little something that each and every one of us can relate to... the importance of time, memories, and finding closure. Here we share some of the stories behind the wishes we support. May they touch your heart as they touch ours.
Going to the Game
Burnie - Let's Go Blue Jays...
Burnie has always been a Toronto Blue Jays fan. His whole family (including his loving wife, 3 children and 4 grandchildren) watch the games on TV . Burnie wanted to be able to take his family to the game and be able to experience a day of fun, excitement and happiness. We arranged to make that happen by renting a party room for a game and having catering drop by with some great snacks. A great time was had by all!
A Pink Christmas
Susan - A Cabbage Patch Christmas...
Niagra Falls, here we come!
James' very loving wish...
James married the love of his ife Elizabeth 4 days after undergoing surgery in August/12. James was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of brain cancer but that didn’t stop this couple from getting married aboard the Maid of the Mist in Niagara Falls. This year the cancer returned with a vengeance. Because of Jame’s love for flying, his wish to us was to fly over Niagara Falls in a helicopter to create a magical memory celebrating their wedding. We received this wish and went to work with the help of some great people. The first thing we did was to contact Great Lakes Helicopter and book a ride for James and Elizabeth. The folks there were delighted to be able to assist us in this wish and made sure that the couple had a great time. Many thanks to everyone at Great Lakes Helicopter for making this possible. Then we thought that the best way to travel was by limo so when we contacted Golden Stretch Limo they not only gave us an amazing deal, but did everything they could to ensure that James and Elizabeth had a great ride.
The day wasn’t over yet. We arranged for the limo to bring our couple to Blackshop restaurant where they enjoyed a fantastic meal, and Blackshop arranged for a gorgeous flower arrangement to be on the table when they arrived. A great ending to a day full of memories.
A Trip to Disney World
A message from James and his family...
Dear Angels Anonymous,
My family and I wish to say the biggest heartfelt thank you to you we could possibly give for our wonderful trip to Disney! In the past 7 years we have lived with my devastating illness, which has left us mentally, physically and financially devastated. However with your amazing generosity, we were able to spend a week at a magical place worry free and the best part was I was able to watch my beautiful wife and 2 boys smile again! Life truly is precious and unfortunately we all take it for granted until a life changing disease is introduced into the family, then every little detail, memory and hug becomes very important! We have also found that this illness has shown us that our country has so many wonderful people in it, always willing to go out of their way to help and Angels Anonymous certainly does that!
You have given us a wonderful gift that has been amazing to build lasting memories and again we can never thank you enough, you definitely are Angels and may God bless you each and every day!
A Cowboy's Wish
Ken, the mountains and the horses...
Ken is from a smaller town in Nova Scotia but is a true cowboy at heart. His wish was to simply fly to Calgary, see the Rockies and hopefully pet a horse. We were hoping to provide just a bit more….so we went to work. Thinking it might be nicer to view the Rockies while IN the Rockies we looked to Banff. It was two weeks before Christmas when we started our search so we knew it was not going to be an easy feat. But with a big of legwork, we were able to arrange a lovely stay for ken and his family at the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel, time with some horses, a gondola ride, dinner and a little bit more!
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Vancouver Reunion
A tale of two sisters...
As it so often happens, Brenda’s wish came to us via a loved one. In her case it was
Brenda's sister, Betty who reached out to us in October. Brenda and Betty have never spent much time apart and over the past several years have lived together, supporting each other through all of life’s ups and downs.
Diagnosed with cancer, Brenda’s wish was to see her son, Christopher, one more time. It had been quite a while since they had been able to see each other as Brenda lives in New Brunswick and Christopher lives out in Vancouver. An application was quickly put into process and approved, but as we all have experienced life often has a way of rewriting our plans.
The sisters, through no fault of their own found themselves without a decent place to live and with all the stress Brenda had to go back for more treatment. To top it all off, their ID had gone missing and needed to be reapplied for. It was then that fate and compassion of others decided to step in. An amazing team of social workers, doctors and family caretakers came to their aid and things slowly started to turn around. Once they were settled it was time for our own Team of Angels to do their
magic! Bernie from “The Travel Agent Next Door” arranged a great package through Air Canada for flight and hotel and soon the two sisters and their cousin/caretaker Samantha were on their way to Vancouver! Cynthia, the manager, from the Stanley Park Miniature Train attraction graciously donated a Christmas train ride for all of them through Stanley Park. Christopher was overjoyed to be able to finally see his
mom!
Brenda, Betty, Christopher, and Samantha spent an amazing week together seeing the many of the sights that Vancouver has to offer including the Capilano Bridge, Stanley Park, and they even managed to squeeze in some shopping time in Chinatown. With Christopher as a guide they got as much packed in as they could, all while spending some much needed time with each other, creating the lasting memories that will be so treasured. Most importantly a trip that was “supposed” to happen in October ended up being fulfilled just before Christmas. The best Christmas gift ever, for all of them… proof that things often have a way of turning out just as they should.