By MAGGIE MCMURRAY
Moapa Valley Progress
Local youngster, Vidalia Bennett recently received the wish of a lifetime. The 7-year-old was presented with a new travel trailer, and a number of gifts to go with it, courtesy of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the National Park Service, and Blue Dog RV.
The presentation was made on the shores of Lake Mead at Boulder Beach. Vidalia was presented with the trailer, which was also filled with food for her family, all of the attachments and hookups the trailer needed to go camping, and several bags of Lake Mead National Recreation Area souvenirs.
Representatives of all three organizations were there and went the extra mile to make the day special.
Vidalia was identified as a Make-A-Wish candidate by one of her nurses and her hematologist. She suffers from neutropenia, which is a disease that compromises her immune system. It includes symptoms such as a lower than normal white cell count. This leaves Vidalia extremely susceptible to bacteria and infections. The disease was diagnosed when Vidalia was 2 years old.
She has just finished a grueling regimen that included one year of injections and 3 years of IV infusions to help her combat the disease. Currently she is doing well. She is now able to attend school and return to semi-normal life, though she is being constantly monitored.
When Make-A-Wish first contacted the Bennetts, Vidalia’s wish granters met with her one-on-one and got to know her by asking her a number of questions. These questions included everything from what she liked to do to what her favorite food is. Then together with Vidalia they composed a Make-A-Wish wish list for Vidalia’s top three wishes on it. Top on the list was a travel trailer.
“Vidalia loves camping,” said Vidalia’s mom. “It is her favorite thing to do. We’ve stayed with family and friends in their campers in the past and it was a great experience for her. She also loves fishing and just being outside. So it really is the perfect thing for her.”
Bennett said that their family has already had some great family experiences with the gift. “They gave it to us on Boulder Beach and it was full of food,” she said. “So we were able to just stay and camp for a few days as a family and Vidalia loved it so much. Even since we’ve been home she goes out to the trailer, turns on the air conditioning, and plays and sings and has dance parties with her sister. It’s wonderful and we really want everyone to know how grateful we are.”
Vidalia seconded that she is grateful to Make-A-Wish Foundaton and loves the trailer. “It’s really great!” she said. “I think it is so neat because it has a bathroom and a refrigerator and a bed on the table. It’s so much fun!”
Vidalia is looking forward to many more camping trips in the future with her mom, her dad, Chris, and her sister Emsley.
Shawna said that she can’t say enough good about the organizations that made Vidalia’s wish possible. “They have made such an impact for good on our family and on Vidalia,” she said. “The most important thing to us is that these organizations get the recognition they deserve for how amazing they are and the incredible things they do for children. Thank you so very much!”
