Matthew’s mom served 20 years in the Army Reserve including a year’s deployment in Iraq when he was just three-years-old. But her greatest challenge came more recently in 2021 when, as a single mom, her 17-year-old son, Matthew, was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma – a rare cancer of the bone or soft tissue. His diagnosis rocked her world, especially as she maintained her busy schedule.
After many months of treatments and surgeries, it was time for the now 18-year-old to think about something positive – and that’s where Wishes & More came into the picture. We asked him to share his greatest wish and were delighted it was something he wanted to share with his mom – a trip to San Francisco! He has always loved to travel and, even as a young man, all the money he scraped away through odd jobs has been put away to go on trips. However, this vacation was covered from start to finish by Wishes & More. This wish meant the world to both of them because it not only gave them an opportunity to be together, it also served as a celebration of everything Matthew has endured. Matthew loved the views and doing all of the sight-seeing tours on his wish trip. From Chinatown to Golden Gate Park to Fisherman’s Wharf to Muir Woods, Matthew packed in a week of incredible memories on his Wish Trip! Special thanks to wish contributors Ethel Konopka for being our on-the-ground San Francisco tour rep adding some WAM sparkle to his wish & Hilton San Francisco Union Square for donating his 6-night stay!
We are also thrilled to know that he is considering continuing his education studying nursing due to his experiences in and out of the hospital! Whatever he chooses, Wishes & More will be ready to continue to support him with his Scholarship of Hope®!
