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Credit: DisneyA young girl received her dream trip after beating leukemia and then got a special surprise on her way home from the vacation.
Jessa Love, 6, was diagnosed with Philadelphia chromosome positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia, and started her treatment on her birthday, recalls Jessa’s mother. In an interview with Good Morning America, the parent explains how hard it was to see her child going through the disease, which Jessa was diagnosed with on August 15, 2020. Two years later, in August 2022, Jessa Love would ring the bell, ending her treatment.
Following the positive news, a wish was put in with Make-A-Wish Idaho, and a while later, Jessa and her cousin were surprised at the airport with a vacation to Walt Disney World Resort. “It really was just a special way to end this whole thing,” says Jessa’s mother in the video.
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However, the surprises wouldn’t end there. After all the Mickey Mouse magic, Jessa received a special announcement while on her flight home with Southwest Airlines. The flight attendant onboard had Jessa stand at the front of the plane while he told the rest of the passengers that she had just beaten cancer. “From all of your crew at Southwest and I’m sure all of your fellow passengers, we want to welcome you home,” announced the attendant. “We want to wish you a very healthy, happy, prosperous, and long life ahead. Keep your head up. Keep your chin up. Keep fighting.”
You can watch the full video here.
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Per the Make-A-Wish website, The Walt Disney Company has helped Make-A-Wish grant over 140,000 wishes since 1980. That number now seems to have risen as just a few months ago, Disney celebrated its partnership with Make-A-Wish and the 150,000 wishes they have helped to grant.
Following the May announcement, Disney Experiences (formerly Disney Parks, Experiences and Products) chairman Josh D’Amaro said: “Disney and Make-A-Wish are a perfect match–we’re both in the business of creating happiness. We also understand the transformative impact we can make on the lives of wish kids and their families. We’re thrilled to honor the history of Make-A-Wish and Disney together and look forward to creating special moments for many years to come.”
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