In the end stages of COPD, Beverly is receiving hospice care to help keep her comfortable and manage her pain. She struggles with an old, misfitting and broken set of dentures that hurts her mouth and makes eating hard; her dream is to receive new dentures that fit properly and allow her to rest more peacefully. “My request comes for reasons of health and pride,” Beverly writes. “I believe that a person feels better when they have a healthy mouth. However, due to my health and financial resources I am unable to manage this on my own.” Resolving such a simple difficulty in Beverly’s life would be all the difference for her.
Bonnie and her sisters are three peas in a pod. They love nothing more than spending time together, and – especially as Bonnie’s health has declined – have remained pillars of strength for one another. With fewer than six months to live, Bonnie dreams of one final night out on the town with her sisters, brothers-in-law, and her 92-year-old mother. “We all love musical theater and good food,” she says. ” My family has always been my ‘dream.’ Since I’ve been ill I have had the greatest support team any woman could possibly ask for.” Sharing the theater and a sumptuous lobster dinner is Bonnie’s chance to reciprocate her love for them in a way they’ll each be able to treasure forever.
Blessed with a wonderful 12-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter, married for 14 years to his high school sweetheart, and never having missed a day of exercise or surfing, Chris had been on top of the world. Then doctors found cancer in a lump in his thigh he had thought was a surfing injury. “The bottom has dropped out of our world,” he writes. “We are devastated. We had so many plans.” One of those plans was a family trip to Hawaii. Chris’ whole family loves the beach, and have been dreaming of tropical paradise as long as any of them can remember. This young husband and father wants nothing more than to realize that dream while he still can. “My kids could have the memory in their hearts to treasure forever. They could say I kept my promise to take them there.”
A transplant from Michigan to beautiful Santa Barbara, Calif., James “Jake” – a pediatric surgeon – and his wife and three-year-old daughter had been making the most of their life in their new hometown. Then, in 2010, Jake was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease). His decline has been steady; he can no longer work or write. His independence is quickly disappearing, and he has less than a year to live. A huge fan of jazz music, Jake dreams to travel to Louisiana to attend the New Orleans Jazz Festival, immersing himself in the sights and sounds of that dynamic city – while jazz permeates his whole visit. It would be this music lover’s dream come true!
The past two years have been devastating for Karen and her family. From experiencing what she thought were just headaches, to being diagnosed with stage four brain cancer, to rigorous treatments and the loss of her eyesight, due to the tumor damaging her optic nerve, Karen is desperate to remember what it’s like to smile and enjoy life. She has six children aged 8-19 and a loving, supportive husband who works day and night to support their large family. “We don’t know what the future holds for Karen,” her husband writes, “but we feel we must act now to make this dream happen. Her wish is this: Karen is the biggest fan of Goofy. She has three Goofy tattoos, over 200 pieces of Goofy memorabilia, and custom Goofy license plates. It is her dream to visit Disney World, and to be able to share this type of family memory with all of her children.”
