Season of Wishes: Lillie Kuhn
SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – It is the season of wishes, but for many kids battling a serious illness, all they want is the chance to forget about their treatment.
The Make a Wish Foundation has stepped in to grant wishes and create memories that last a lifetime.
Lillie Kuhn loves the ocean and the sunshine, and by her smile, that seems to always be on her face, you would never guess she’s been in a fight to save her life.
“I kept going to the doctors office, and they kept telling me I had the flu,” said Lillie.
Lillie did not have the flu. In February, doctors told her she had Burkitt’s Lymphoma.
“She didn’t even know what that word meant. She knew it was bad because I started crying,” said Lillie’s mom.
“You don’t ever think any of your kids are gonna be diagnosed with cancer. It was very foreign to us,” said Lillie’s father.
For Lillie, she says, she did not know what to think, but she did know life was about to change.
“The doctors told me you’re going to have to have chemo. You’re gonna have to focus on staying strong. You’re going to miss school. You’re not going to be able to do things the way you used to do them. So things just changed for me a lot,” she said.
But doctors never told her that through two rounds of chemo, she would have to smile, but she did anyway.
“I just focused on trying to get better, and tried to think of the positive things,” she said.
Lillie’s last day of treatment for chemo was on her 14th birthday. A birthday that would come with an extra special wish from the Make a Wish Foundation.
“Some make a wish folks actually came to our house and interviewed us. They tried to find out what our interests are, and Lillie said she wanted to go somewhere warm and tropical ,” said Lillie’s mom.
To the Bahamas they went. The whole family. Lillie, her parents, her brother Rudy, and his girlfriend Jaycee. They stayed at the Atlantis Resort.
“We got to swim with the dolphins, and go on all the water slides, and see all the pretty things at the resort. It was pretty fun,” said Lillie.
“I really appreciate everything they did for our family, and we’d love to help them in the future as well,” said Lillie’s mom.
Now an ambassador for the Make A Wish Foundation, Lillie can help other kids facing a serious illness.
“I would just tell them to stay positive because there is something big to look forward to,” said Lillie.
Lillie is now disease free and has to be monitored and go in for blood tests every month, but she says she is looking forward to helping other kids as an ambassador.
