Two days after my daughter’s second birthday, I was handed a teddy bear and told by a doctor, “I’m sorry, it looks like Heaven has blood cancer.” I hate that bear.

Living in a hospital room with a sick child for weeks on end is an indescribable experience. Doctors and nurses coming and going, tests, tubes. So, when I heard another knock on the door, I warily said, “Come in.” This time, however, it was Children’s Cancer Association (CCA)’s MyMusicRx team, who gently asked if Heaven would enjoy some music. She had hardly been responsive for weeks. I said, “Sure, why not.”

Still My Same Little Girl

The next thing I knew, Heaven was rattling the egg shaker and singing, and even dancing a bit in bed. I cannot put into words the feeling of seeing your child come back to life. The power of CCA’s MyMusicRx program gave me a gift, a glimpse of hope, that Heaven was still my same little girl.

Looking Forward to the Doctor

That’s when I learned about all the amazing ways CCA helps families like mine. The first day Heaven’s Chemo Pal Mentor Program match, Raina, came to visit, they just “clicked.” Heaven hopped right into her lap. I was shocked and so happy. To have a Chemo Pal mentor, whose sole focus is to create happiness for your child, is such a blessing. Raina made both of our lives 100% better. I can relax and talk to doctors and Heaven now actually looks forward to doctor visits.

CCA even made the holidays happen for us, and for my 11-year-old son, Shane, who was doing his very best to stay strong when Mom’s focus needed to stay on Heaven. We pretty much never left the hospital. The Link volunteer filled the hospital room with gifts, everything we put on our list – and more. It was beyond amazing.

When you contribute to CCA, these are the experiences that you make possible for families like mine who are overwhelmed and traumatized by pediatric illness – thank you.

Please support CCA today with a gift. Getting through a pediatric cancer diagnosis really does require more than medicine; it requires music, and laughter, and joy, and all those things CCA is really good at providing.

With Heartfelt Thanks,

Lacelin Nordstrom

Shane & Heaven’s Mom