Fullerton Elks Lodge #1993
Orange Coast District #0960
Fullerton, CA
Special Child Committee
The Special Child Committee is now headed by Nyada Cline and Irene Imhof. Much appreciation to Scott Stephens who headed the program for many years.
We will select a child, who is in need of our support in some
small way, each month. Then, on the third Thursday of every month,
we will host that child and their family for a nice dinner and
then introduce them on the floor of the lodge. At that point, we
will grant the child a wish.
Nyada Cline 714-504-5574 NCline@roadrunner.com Irene Imhof 714-507-5793 Imhof73@gmail.com
January 2011 Special Child: Our Special Child in January is Diego Saldana.
13 year old, Diego Saldana, is a cancer survivor. He was diagnosed with ALL
(Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) at the age of 5. He went through 3 years of
Chemo and other treatments to attack his cancer.The doctors tell him that there is a 50% chance that his cancer will return. He also suffered a slight memory loss from the treatments and the doctors are still working with him to improve this situation, but other than that he is cancer free.
Diego’s father left when he was 3 months old. So his mother raised her
3 children by herself. Coupled with her health issues, this has been very
difficult financially for them, but she always made sure they had something
in their stomachs. We helped them out along those lines, at our
January 20th lodge meeting.Diego and his family enjoyed a fabulous dinner (funded by our Sunday Breakfast Bunch), and the children were beside themselves, because they had never eaten steak before. Then we took them on a tour of the lodge, while the Exalted Ruler opened the meeting and took care of some housekeeping.
Nyada and I were introduced to the members shortly after 8 o’clock and we in turn introduced Diego, his mother Maria and his 16 year old sister Erika. After introducing ER, Butch, to the family for his pin presentation and giving Diego the Special Child pin, Nyada and I proceeded to give Diego his gifts of much needed clothing and a new bike. Then with Diego’s help we presented his mother with a card and $75 Grocery store gift certificate, which brought tears to her eyes.
To top off this wonderfully heartwarming evening of giving, we also gave her a check which was handed to me on the way in that evening, from an anonymous donor.
Bless all of you who help us help them.
PER, Scott Stephens
Special Child Chairman
February's Special Child (2011):
Our Special Child in February is Alan Arroyo. Alan was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) at age 5. It was devastating news to his parents, who had a 10 year old daughter and another one on the way. But the doctors at CHOC and the folks at OCFOCF got them the help they needed.
Alan was treated for 3 ½ years, with Chemo therapy, and his cancer is now in remission. He did suffer some minor mental affects, and needed a little special education. He still goes to see the doctor once a year. However, he is now in the 6th grade and doing very well.
After a wonderful meal, Nyada and I introduced Alan, his parents (Alludeet and Manuel) and his sisters; Eileen (16), Elsie (5) and Michelle (2), to all the members at the lodge meeting, on the 17th.
The Exalted Ruler came out to the Alter to meet the family and present his pin to Alan. Then Nyada present Alan with the Special Child pin and his parents with our framed certificate.
We gave Alan his gifts, starting with a pair of hockey gloves, then his hockey tickets (for the whole family just off the ice). Then a cash envelope, to help make their visit a little more enjoyable.
Special thanks to the Anaheim Ducks for their very generous donation.
It has been my sincere pleasure serving as you Special Child chairman, these past 3 years. I now hand over the reins to the very capable and caring Nyada Cline (Past First Lady). I wish her all the success, in our continued support of this wonderful program.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
April's Special Child (2011):
Our Special Child in April is Freddy Morales.On Thursday, April 21st, 2011 we introduced a young man of 17 years of age who was diagnosed with leukemia 6 months ago. The illness came upon him suddenly on a Saturday morning, and 3 days later he was at CHOC hospital planning his recovery.
Freddy is a good looking young man who excelled in football and soccer. His school mates started a website for Freddy and you can visit it at: www.teamfreddy.com. Freddy has just completed his 4th go round of chemotherapy and he feels good most days. His hair has fallen out and grown in again.
The family had dinner at the Fullerton Elks Lodge and then Nyada
Cline & Irene Imhof, Co-Chairpersons, presented Freddy with his
I-pad which will help him with his schoolwork. The Lodge photographer
helped the family capture this heartwarming event with their own personal
camera, as well as ours.Thanks to all of you who donate to the Fullerton Elks Special Child Program.
Nyada and Irene
May's Special Child (2011):
Our Special Child in May is Julianna Smith.This month’s special child has had to deal with much at her tender age. Julianna Smith, age 5 ½ years old, was born 16 weeks early and was in the hospital 4 ½ months before she could join the family at home.
She has cerebral palsey and is missing the left side of her cerebellum. Julianna is non verbal and functions like a 1 year old. However, she is experiencing frustrations at not being able to communicate. Her behavior therapist believes that an I-Pad would enhance her communication abilities. And this was our presentation to Julianna.
Julianna loves to play with toys and listen to her 2 sisters, Olivia – 2 years old, and Isabella – 10 years old, play around her.
Please meet Tony and Dina Smith, and Julianna, Olivia and Isabella.
June's Special Child (2011):
Our Special Child in June is Kaela Lovil.Kaela (pronounced Kayla) means “Beloved sweetheart”, and when you see her you will know that is true. Kaela was born on March 6, 2007, and at 4 months of age was diagnosed with Aicardi syndrome, which means that the structure that connects the 2 sides of the brain is partially or completely missing. As a result, Kaela has epilepsy, cannot speak or walk and has developmental issues. She is 5 years old, but functions presently as a 1 year old.
Kaela loves beads and bright colored musical toys to play with. Kaela is the first child of Matthew and Stephanie Lovil.
Matthew was out of town on business, but we had Stephanie, and
Kaela, and Kaela’s nanny, Melissa Aroway, and Kaela’s great-grandparents,
Rodney and Cathy Lilliquist. The Elks restaurant served a special
Italian-night meal. Tom Conlon, PDDGER, joined the table for dinner.
The Special Child was presented with gifts from the Elks: a special mirrored ballet bar, and two developmental toys. Flowers were given to Stephanie.
Photos were taken with ER Butch who gave Stephanie and Kaela his pin. Irene presented the Special Child pin and the Special Child framed plaque.
We were fortunate enough to have our Vice-President David Skelton, and members from other Orange Coast District lodges visiting during this presentation.
Nyada Cline Special Child Co-Chairperson
July's Special Child (2011):
Our Special Child in July is Lauren Matranga.Lauren is a beautiful precocious 6 year old autistic child. She is blessed as she loves music, videos, dancing, angry birds, and has wonderful mathematics and social skills.
Lauren’s parents, Neal and Amber Matranga, noticed Lauren’s developmental delays at about 18 months of age. She did not speak and coordination was difficult.
As an infant she had constant digestion problems and had trouble keeping food down. The doctors treated the symptoms until her parents discovered that Lauren had many food allergies.
At about 3 years of age they were able to get some help and she was able to speak by age 4, and start developing. She was soon able to walk and talk.
Lauren will be 6 years old in another month and is progressing rapidly with the help of occupational therapy. She has an incredible memory. She currently attends Fairmont School.
Previous Years
February's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child for the month of February, Julianne Aceves, came to us with a bitter sweet story. This 7 year old boy was diagnosed with Lymphoma at age 6.
His doctors launched a hefty attack of Chemo therapy
and Radiation treatments with great success. He continues to go in for
scans every three months but his cancer is in remission.Unfortunately his mom had to quit her job to take care of him and cannot get another one due to the current financial climate. This has put a huge strangle on the whole family’s finances. They rent out a room in their 4 bedroom home (which was already full with their family of six) and the kids don’t have much in the way of school clothes.
So after my visit with the family my wife and I went on a shopping spree. We wanted to make sure, at a minimum that all 4 children had clothes on their backs for school. We hit a great sale at Kohl’s and were able to get 3-4 outfits for all 4 boys, a few things for mom & dad plus a $50 gift card, for I our Special Child to buy whatever he wishes.
After the lodge hosted them to a great meal (during which Julianne asked Chef Manny to come out and pay them a visit), the whole family was brought onto the floor of the lodge and introduced to all the members present. I introduced Julianne Aceves (our Special Child), his brothers; Henry (16), Andres Jr. (12), Jonathon (9), who is an honor roll student, and his parents Juana & Andres.
Exalted Ruler, Dick Moore, came down to the Alter and greeted Julianne and his family and then presented him with his ER pin and our district pin. I then gave Julianne his Special Child pin and had the lodge officers bring out the clothing bags (beginning with Julianne’s). As the bags were brought out one by one, the children grinned from ear to ear and tears of joy welled up in mom & dad's eyes.
We handed Julianne the bag with his requested parents gifts so he could present it to them personally and then handed him the $50 gift card. The lodge photographers helped the family capture this heartwarming event on their personal camera as well as ours.
Thank you to everyone who donates to our Special Child program.
PER, Scott Stephens
March's Special Child (2010):
Our Special Child in March, Samantha Trujillo, was one of our
most precious children yet. We couldn’t tell it at the time,
but 5 year old, Samantha Trujillo was diagnosed with ALL (Acute
Lymphoblastic Leukemia) at the age of 3. She went through the
usually battery of treatments, with all the usual side-effects,
but today her cancer is in remission. She must continue going
to the hospital every 3 months for testing, but the prognosis is very good.
[Pictures are coming.]
After the family was treated to a fine meal, we were all
brought into the lodge room and introduced to the members assembled.
The Exalted Ruler came out to the Alter to meet them and present
Samantha with his ER pin. I then present her with the Special
Child pin and present the family with our framed memorial certificate.
Then Sami was presented with her gifts (a bicycle & Legoland tix
for the whole family). She had told me that she wanted to take the
whole family to Legoland because they had done so much for her.
However, we couldn’t distract her from her pretty pink bike,
once it was brought out.
She was a delightful little girl and went around the whole lodge
room giving every member a “high five”, before we were escorted
out of the meeting.Exalted Ruler, Butch Rock, and the lodge Trustees have opted to continue the Special Child program again this year. The presentations are held the 3rd Thursday of every month and we hope to see you here.
Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens
April's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in April is Gregory Delgado.
Gregory Delgado came to us from our friends at OCFOCF (Orange County
Foundation for Oncology Children and Families). He was diagnosed with
ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) at the age of 3. His doctors were able
to get the cancer under control with a stringent regiment of chemo therapy.
It has now been in remission since last December.
After a wonderful meal in the View dining room, I took the Gregory and
his family on a tour of our beautiful facility. We were then escorted into
the lodge meeting and introduced to all members assembled. I introduced our
Special Child, Gregory Delgado (age 6), his brother and sister, Steven (9) and
Dianna (3), and then his parents Gregorio and Ibeth. They shared that Gregory
is a 1st grader and his “favorite subject is recess”.
The Esquire escorted the Exalted Ruler to the Alter who presents his pins to
Gregory and I presented him with the Special Child pin and the family with
the memorial certificate.
The family has NO computer in their home so we granted Gregory’s wish for one. We hope this gift will change his priorities on school preferences.
Thanks to all of you who donate
or participate in this wonderful program.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
May's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in May is Fabrizio Sobrino.
On May 20, 2010 the members present at the lodge meeting were introduced to
11 year old, Fabrizio Sobrino. He was diagnosed with a cancerous Tumor called
Teratoma, when he was 6 years old.Teratoma (which is Latin for “Monster”) is a fetal tumor that duplicates other body organs. His was found between his lungs and heart and was the size of an Orange, by the time it was diagnosed.
After many trips to the hospital, his doctors decided that surgery was the only way to go. This ended up being the right decision, because after 3 months in recovery he is cancer free and never needs chemo or any other treatments.
After being treated to a wonderful meal, the Special Child and his family were
introduced at the lodge meeting. Family members included were: little brother
Giovanni (9), Mom & Dad Evelyn & Alfanso, Grandma Doris and Great Grandma Violetta
(who didn’t want me to tell anyone she was 93, but I did anyway).We gave a special thanks to the Sunday Brunch for sponsoring our wonderful dinner and then introduced the Exalted Ruler for his pin presentation. After which I presented Fabrizio with the Special Child pin and the family with our memorable certificate. We then presented Fabrizio with his special wish: a large backyard, trampoline for the whole family to enjoy.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
July's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in July is Nathan Fonseca.
The young man we were introduced to on July 15th was born in 1998. He appeared healthy in every way at first, but slowly his parents noticed that he didn’t appear to be developing normally. After several doctors of different types told his parents that he was fine, a CT scan was performed at 8 months and the diagnosis came in; “Hypoplasia of the Corpus Callosum” and optic nerve. His development had been severely delayed in every aspect of his life (rolling over, crawling, walking, potty training) and he cannot speak.
He is very bright and understands everything going on around him, but with only limited ability to sign, he has great difficulty in communicating with anyone. This makes it very difficult for him to be an active member of society and it is very frustrating to him.
On behalf of the Fullerton Elks Lodge, Chairman Scott Stephens changed all that.
After a wonderful meal (sponsored by the Sunday Brunch Bunch) our Special Child
and his family were given a tour of our lodge and then brought into the lodge meeting.
Scott introduced our Special Child, 11 year old, Nathan (Nate) Fonseca, his 15 year
old brother Nicolas, mom & dad (Barbara & Anthony), Grandma Cathleen and Grandparents
Irene & Steve. Also joining the special group this night were our own favorite twins
Janet & Julie Vandergrift because Janet introduced Scott to the family, and new co-chairmen
Nyada Cline & Nancy Wunderlick.Exalted Ruler, Butch Rock came out to the Alter to meet them all and present his pin to Nate. Afterward Scott presented Nate with the Special Child pin and his family with the framed certificate. Then, when he could wait no longer, Scott presented Nate with his gift.
Nate’s eyes lit with excitement as he opened his gift. Scott had told Nate and his family
that he wasn’t sure we could do such a high priced item, so it came as quite a shock.
But with the very generous help of Assistant Esquire, Janet Vandergrift, we were able to make
his dream come true. The item was an iPad which will be loaded with a special computer
program called “Proloquo2Go”. It speaks for Nate as he touches pictures on the screen.
It will help him to communicate with everyone around him and lead a more productive
and satisfying life.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
August's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in August is Kira Romero.
This family most of us already know quite well. Her mother, Kristen Romero has been singing at events here at our lodge for 8 years. Additionally, while working at the Fullerton Police Department, she has performed at Angels, Ducks and Flyers games, just to name a few. But she had to take a leave to help daughter Kira and deal with her own spinal problems. Father, Ben, is a retired Fullerton Police Officer and brother, Ben, is still on the force.
Our Special Child, Kira Romero, has had "Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome" (or PCOS) since she was 14 years old. She also has "Endometriosis" and has chronic pain. She has had several surgeries and therapies, one which ended in a severe reaction that again hospitalized her. She was at an Angels game 3 weeks ago and had to be rushed to the Emergency room by ambulance. The medications have caused her almost as many problems as they have helped.
Now at age 16 she is trying to make up the 40 days of school she lost last year and lose the 35 lbs that medications gave her, all while entering a new school year.
After a wonderful dinner, prepared by chef Manny, I took our guests on a tour of
the lodge facilities and then we were escorted into the lodge room. I introduced
our group of guests, which also included Kira's boyfriend, Matt, and her sister
Elisa. The Esquire brought the Exalted Ruler to the Alter to meet the family and
present Kira with his pins. Then I presented her with our Special Child pin and
presented the family with our framed certificate.
Kira proudly shared her PCOS poster, from her Biology class, explaining to all the members present exactly what PCOS is. Then we surprised her to the point of tears with gifts: 1) Tickets to Disneyland for her and the best friend who stuck by her through all her ordeals, 2) A Limo ride (something she has always wanted) and 3) A letter from the Orange County Flyers, inviting her to throw out the first pitch at their last game of the season. She really loves baseball and she was very involved in softball, track & field until this illness hit her.
The evening was a huge success and we were able to finally give back to a family
that has done so much for us. Thank you all for your support and generosity.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
September's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in September is Richard Landeau.
On September 16 we granted a wish for Richard Landeau, 14, who has been having cancer problems since he was 4 years old. He lost a kidney to a “Wilms” tumor and has gone through surgery and chemo therapy to rid his body of the cancer. However, he was just in the hospital a few weeks ago and was diagnosed with skin cancer.
Richard’s heart (as well as other organs) has been weakened, so he’s no longer
allowed to play his favorite sports: soccer, basketball and surfing. Additionally,
he has now developed debilitating migraines. He had an MRI done the day he visited
us, but wasn’t going to get the results for some time.
All in all he and his parents are happy with his progress, because they were told that most children end up in a wheel chair after all he’s been through. Richard and his little brother Michael (who was born during all this) both attend psychotherapy to deal with everything they must go through.
After a fabulous meal, prepared by Chef Manny and sponsored by our Sunday Brunch, we
were escorted into the lodge meeting and I introduced Richard, his mom and dad,
Marley & Carlos Landeau, and his 9 year old brother, Michael.
I shared with everyone that Richard wants to focus on a medical career so he can
help others. He is one of the youngest students taking classes at Santiago College
for it, and he’s taking Career Focused Medical classes at Canyon High School.
Exalted Ruler Butch Rock came down to join us at the Alter, and present his ER pin
to Richard. Then I gave Richard our Special Child pin and his parents our appreciation
certificate. We then presented him with his $300 gift certificate from Best Buy so he
could purchase an iPad (which he had been saving for).
On another note; we will be hosting all our Special Children from the last 3 years, to a private Christmas Party, featuring a visit from Santa, with gifts for all the children (including siblings), snacks, hot cocoa and more, on December 19th. If you are interested in helping out, please call me at (714) 801-6230.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
October's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in November is Joseph Zimmermann.
On October 21, 2010 we were introduced
to a young boy with a remarkable story.
He was 6 year old Joseph Zimmermann
and he’d been going through cancer
treatments since he was 3 years old.
His story was remarkable because his parents and doctors almost
lost him within a week of the diagnosis of ALL
(Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). You see, the doctors kept sending
him home, telling his parents he only had the flu. However,
immediately upon his accurate diagnosis he was given 2 blood
transfusions, in the first day (which is unheard of). He’s had many
Spinal Taps and up until 3 weeks ago, continuous Chemo treatments.
The doctors say he is now in remission and there is probably a 70% chance he’s in
the cancer free.
Nayda Cline and I had a wonderful meal with
Joseph and his family before taking them on a
tour of our beautiful facility and then
introducing them to the members at the
lodge meeting. Joseph was joined by his
parents (John & Rosalyn), his 16 year old
sister (Naomi) and Grandma (Carla). They
traveled all the way down from Burbank to
be with us that evening.
After sharing some of Joseph’s Dare-Devil tendencies (kite-surfing,
trampoline, broken swing set and a broken foot from boogie boarding) the
Esquire brought the Exalted Ruler down to the Alter to meet the family and
present his ER pin. I then presented Joseph with the Special Child pin and his
family with our framed, participation, certificate.
Then each of the 3 Knights presented him with his gifts (a Wii Avatar game, a Wii balance board and a new bike).
See you on the 3rd Thursday of every month.
Remember, “It pays to come to meetings”.
PER, Scott Stephens,
Special Child Chairman
November's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in November is Christopher Garcia.
Christopher, 9 years old, has been battling cancer since he was 2 years old.
He had a tough case of ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). He suffered 2
relapses during his 5 years of Chemo & radiation, but he finally beat it.
He was a prime candidate for a bone marrow transplant, because at one point, the doctors thought more chemo might have ended his young life. However, a donor never came along. Then a miracle happened… Christopher started getting better. He has been receiving good reports from the doctor since 2008 and now only goes every 6 months for a checkup.
After a wonderful meal with the family, co-chairman Nyada Cline and I
took them on a tour of our facility before being introduced to the members
assembled at the lodge meeting. I introduce Christopher and his parents
before sharing some dinner antidotes and his grandmother's story.
Grandma was diagnosed with cancer last year, at age 80 and didn't want
to go through the pain of the treatments. Christopher overheard this
conversation and he talked her into the treatment. He also assured her
that her hair would grow back. Grandma is now undergoing treatment and
is doing fine.
After Exalted Ruler Butch came down to the Altar to present his pin,
I presented Christopher with the Special Child pin and the family with
their certificate and Christmas Party invite. Finally, we presented
Christopher with his gifts before taking some photos and saying goodbye.
If you don't have any other reason to come up for a lodge meeting, please try to make our Special Child nights on the third Thursday of every month.
Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens
December's Special Child (2010): Our Special Child in December is Eon Davis.
Eon was diagnosed with ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) at age 2. He went through
three long years of chemo-therapy and at age 5 was cancer free. Recently he’s had
some heart palpitations and is being tested for epilepsy,
but other than that he is perfectly healthy.
At the lodge meeting I introduced Eon, his mother, Annabelle, his Grandma, Yolanda,
sister Brianna (12), sister, Sabrina (8), sister Hanna (6), little brother Steven (2)
and the close family friend who helped them through the rough times, April. The Esquire escorted the Exalted Ruler down to the Alter to meet Eon and his family and present his ER pin. Then I gave Eon his Special Child pin and my co-chairman, Nyada Cline, gave the family our framed commemorative certificate.
After sharing some of our interesting dinner conversations I presented Eon with his
gifts. After opening the set of children’s books, I shared, with the members present
how he loves to read, like his big sister. He also loves to write and is even
interested in becoming an author. Then I mentioned how he wants to get in shape
after opening the Wii Fit we purchased for him.
I must point out that little brother Steven will be remembered by everyone in the
dining room that evening. Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens
Special Child Christmas Party (2010): A Christmas Party for all of 2010's Special Children
T'was an Afternoon of Giving at the Fullerton Elks Lodge
On December 19th the lodge hosted its first annual Special Child Christmas Party, since it reopened its doors three years ago. The event was a huge success, despite the rain, and it epitomized the giving nature of the BPOE.
Hot cocoa, cookies and other yummies warmed bellies while the beautifully decorated lodge filled the other senses with the joy of the season. Trustee’s wife, Gayle Trapasso, gathered all the children around for her recital of “Twas the Night Before Christmas”.
After a few words of thanks from event chairman, Scott Stephens, and the lodge Exalted Ruler, Butch Rock, Santa Claus made a grand entrance with 2 of his elves. All 64 children at this wonderful event were surprised with presents from Santa while sitting on his lap.
Many lodge members and spouse helped with this huge undertaking; buying and wrapping personalized gifts, baking, decorating, photography and organizing. Special $100 donations were also made by each of the following members, to help with this undertaking: Butch Rock, Steve Vartanian, Gary Chitwood & Jack Ehlers, all of whom deserve to share in all the accolades given by the children and their families.
Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens
Previous Years
July's Special Child (2008): Below is Special Child Cheyenne and her family. In the front, Tom Conlon, E.R. and Scott Stephens, P.E.R, surround Cheyene. (Also, see update below)
In December 2006 Cheyenne Broswell was having a hard time with one eye and vomiting. An optometrist changed her prescription and said she'd be ok. After it didn't appear to be getting any better, Virginia (Cheyenne's mother) mentioned the situation to a doctor friend who told them to take her immediately to get a CAT Scan. The next day they did and she was diagnosed with a mass on the INSIDE of her Brain Stem. They were told she had only 3 months to live.
She started CHEMO the day after Christmas for 30 days straight. Unless you've been there you cannot imagine how horrific this was for 8 year old Cheyenne. But her chances improved to 12 months. She is currently getting CHEMO every other week and doing much better.
Theresa Artigue and her fellow firefighters from New Orleans, heard of Cheyenne's plight and have become close friends of Cheyenne's. They send her helmets and write to her often. It wasn't surprising that Cheyenne's biggest wish was to visit her firefighter friends in New Orleans. On July 17th we hosted Cheyenne and her extensive family for a complimentary dinner, at the lodge and then during the lodge meeting granted her wish. This is one of our dearest programs, so please take the opportunity to come to a lodge meeting the 3rd Thursday of the month, to witness it firsthand. And please remember the Special Child Program when donating.
Special child Cheyenne was sent to Louisiana by the Elks to grant her special wish. At the same time, the Firemen were battling hurricane Gustav. But, they still supported Cheyenne in a way that most of us would be hard pressed to duplicate. Here is their picture and a note from them.
From: Theresa Artigue
Sent: Sunday, August 31, 2008 9:33 PM
To: Scott Stephens
Subject: Team Cheyenne
All 8 guys at station 33 for the hurricane, are Team Cheyenne Warriors! She can battle cancer, we can battle this hurricane! We all shaved our heads to be on her team. The hurricane is now a few hours away and we are ready. We love you to the moon.... FAITH MAKES THINGS POSSIBLE...NOT EASY
UPDATE:
Cheyenne was the little girl we flew to New Orleans to meet her Firefighter friends.
She is in the PICU at CHOC and has been there for the past week. She was having
severe headaches and vomiting, so they admitted her again. They did an MRI and
found multiple spots in her brain in addition to the brainstem tumor that is already
there. They did a brain biopsy Monday (12/8/08) to see if it is more tumor
growth. They’ll know the results in 4-5 days. If the biopsy shows cancer
cells, they will need to add a third Chemotherapy to her current weekly regiment and
another round of many weeks of radiation.
She is now on steroids and multiple pain meds and the headaches are still causing
severe pain, nausea & vomiting. But she is ready and willing to keep
fighting. She has a strong will to live and has touched hundreds if not thousands
of lives with her strength and faith. Please add her to your prayer list. She is
just a little 8 year old girl, with the will to live out her life. If you would
like to learn more about her and leave her a message, this is her website;
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/cheyennebroswell
FINAL UPDATE:
My Fellow Elks,
Many of you know that our first Special Child in the new lodge was Cheyenne Broswell. And her only wish was to go see her Firefighter friends in New Orleans, which we made happen. What most of you may not know is that she passed away last week.
I am passing on the following information from her mother; "tonight (3/25/09) at 11pm on channel 2 Laura Diaz is doing (has done) a story on Chey’s life."
Please keep the family in your prayers.
Our August Special Child
On November 16, 2003 at the age of 10, Daniel Boucher was playing football and ran into a tree. He was taken to the hospital for the injuries related to that accident. However, while performing a CAT scan, the doctors found a Tumor at the top of Daniel's Brain Stem. He was operated on immediately and underwent Chemo for nearly a year. Those treatments seemed to do the trick, knocking out the cancer and extending his young life.
However, the Radiation also had adverse affects on his Brain Stem and knocked out his Pituitary Gland. So he developed "Spasticity" in the knees, meaning he has to continually fight to relax his legs. The doctors don't know yet if his young brain will heal itself, but they are doing Hormone replacements.
Daniel has many dreams and wishes of things he has yet to see and accomplish. Since many of them were out of our range of granting (like going to a Notre Dame game), we concentrated on some of his more local wishes. He wanted to do something for his whole family since they have been so supportive of him in this time of need. One such wish was to take them all to a local theme park and on his list was one of our favorites. On August 15, 2008 after treating Daniel and his family to a nice meal at the lodge, we introduced them during the lodge meeting and gave Daniel tickets to take his whole family to DISNEYLAND. A special thanks to new member, Vivian Glover, for getting the tickets at a great discount for us.
Our October Special Child is Andy.
Andrew (Andy) Whitford, a 6 years old boy, was diagnosed just this past May with non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He has been undergoing Chemo every 3 weeks since June; in fact he had just received a treatment one week before the lodge meeting and still seemed to be quite chipper. Although little brother Joshua stole the show at the dinner before the meeting.
Due to his deficient immune system he can only have limited contact with other people, especially other children. So he doesn't attend school anymore and the family can't go to church. Andy also developed complications to the biopsy on his knee, which compromised the bone. So he is temporarily handicapped as well.
When I spoke to the family it was quite clear that Andy had
only one wish. So to make the days go by a little quicker for Andy,
Joshua, Mom & Dad ... we purchased a Wii game console for Andy
as well as the game of his choice and an additional remote control
(to keep Josh happy).
What a fantastic way to give thanks!
Our February 2009 Special Child is Alex.Alex Bonilla, a very active and smart 5 year old, was diagnosed 3 years ago with Lucemia. He was sick with flu like symptoms all the time. After several visits to the Kaiser Hospital in Anaheim he was diagnosed and began treatment at 2 years old. The doctors say he is responding well and they are expecting a very good outcome from his treatments. Here, Scott Stephens welcomes the family of Mother, Daisy Bonilla, Father, Jose Bonilla, Alex, and Alex's friend Max.
Alex loves school and loves to learn. He plays soccer every night and hones his skill on his Xbox whenever he can. Here, Tom Conlon (now PER) speaks to Alex and family.
To help Alex learn better, Fullerton Elks present Alex with his very own personal computer. Alex is holding the mouse.
Yours in Service, Scott Stephens, Special Child Chairman
Our April 2009 Special Child is Reo Kobayashi.He has Cerebral palsy, an abnormality of motor function that is acquired at an early age (even before birth). He is a quadriplegic and has limited vision. He is in therapy for his hands, arms & legs, as well as his left eye, but remains blind in his right eye (even after surgery).
He is a very bright young man who came over here 3 years ago
from Japan. He is
very social, friendly and active. He has great English skills and attends
4th grade with all the other 9 year-olds in his neighborhood.
However his low
vision often causes him problems with reading.
He has many special needs including
a sports wheel chair, and a special therapeutic tricycle, both a little
out of our affordability level. But we found him another item on his list
of wishes that we felt would serve his needs for many years to come.
Our Special Child for the month of April was 9 year old, Layo (Reo) Kobayashi. His mother, Miyuki was also in attendance at the lodge meeting, but his father Kazumi had just returned to Japan on business.
After a wonderful meal (at which Reo wanted to meet and personally
thank Chef, Manny) we introduced Reo to the members in attendance
at the lodge meeting
April 16th and presented him with his gift: A New Laptop computer
to help him with his studies and projects.
Our May 2009 Special Child is Ben Lummas. Ben was a little better off than most of our children, but none the less has been through quite an ordeal, and it's not over yet.
He's a 7 year
old with Ewing's Sarcoma. It's a type of bone tumor that occurs in children,
most often in the large bones of the arms and legs. It's caused by a chromosome
abnormality. He's had several surgeries including one that took 11 hours
to move some bone and blood supply to his arm. He still has limited mobility
in his arm and leg, but it's been in remission for a year and a half so
the prognosis is very good. After treating the family to a wonderful meal we escorted the Lummas family into the lodge room and introduced them to the members. They included his parents, Jeannette and Mark, 2 year old sister, Samantha (quite the entertainer) and then finally our Special Child, Ben. Ben likes to get out and play catch as often as possible and he's very active in school, but he has some special things he likes to work on in his room when he's relaxing.
It seems that
Ben has quite a Lego collection and there were many more he needed. So
we granted his wishes.
These aren't like your old Lego sets, they come in boxes that are 2 feet square. It suffices to say the whole family left that evening quite happy and it's all due to the generosity of you, the members of the Fullerton Elks Lodge. Please keep all of our Special Children in your prayers.
Yours in Service,
Scott Stephens, PER
Our June Special Child, Dylan Abbey, that Chairman Scott Stephens introduced at the lodge meeting on June 18, 2009, has had A.L.L. (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) since he was 3 years old. In the last 4 years he has had several Bone Marrow Transplants and Immune system treatments at CHOC. In the image to the left, Scott presents the Fullerton Special Child pin to Dylan.
They must now drive to the City of Hope, twice a week for blood replacement
treatments and will have to continue this for the next 9 months. This is
a 1 hour drive each way and a 3.5 to 5 hour treatment.
Dylan is home schooled, due to his Immune system problems and must monitor
his time in the sun carefully, especially during these blood replacements.
So, he is understandably distraught over not being able to swim in the family pool this summer or spend much time with friends. However he and his twin brother, Logan both love to play baseball, build Lego kits and singing Karaoke. They also loved to shoot hoops with dad until the wind blew their basket and pole down, a few months ago, breaking the board. After a nice dinner the family was introduced to the members in the lodge room. In addition to the boys, this included their parents Troy and Debbie Abbey. Then we were able to grant a wish for Dylan. The lodge purchased them a Brand New Basket Ball set with all the bells and whistles.
The evening was particularly wonderful, because we
were also honoring our National Hoop Shoot Winner, Karlie
Samuelson. The entire Samuelson family was on hand to witness this
wonderful evening. Karlie and her sister Bonnie who like her sister is
a 2 time National Winner, made it especially wonderful when they
each gave one of the boys their Elks Hoop Shoot ball.
Both girls donated their National Championship Trophies to the Lodge.
To the right: PER Scott Stephens, Hoop Shoot Champs Katie Lou, Karlie, and Bonnie Samuelson, parents Troy and Debbie Abbey and their sons Dylan and Logan, and Exalted Ruler Dick Moore.
Our July Special Child, Thomas Johnson, is seven years old. He and his family were a referral from last month’s family, the Abbeys. Thomas was diagnosed with bladder cancer at the age of 3. At that time the doctors treated him for the "Rhabdomyolysis Sarcoma" (a soft tissue tumor) and expected pretty good results. "There are only 350 cases a year in the United States", his mother told me. However, the tumor has come back twice since then (each time requiring surgery) and this last time it wrapped itself around his intestines. He undergoes weekly Chemo, plus daily oral treatments, yet his spirits remain high.
Thomas was accompanied by his 9 year old sister, Danielle, his mom,
Christy and his father, Dan.
They were treated to a wonderful meal at the lodge on July 16th, and then given a tour of our new facilities. Afterward they were introduced to the members present at the lodge meeting, who made sure to show special gratitude to big sister Danielle, for her (sometimes difficult) understanding of her brother’s condition (and the fact that he gets so many gifts). After Exalted Ruler, Dick Moore presented Thomas with his ER pin, I presented him with the one-of-a-kind Special Child pin and, on behalf of the members, his wish … a complete electric guitar system with amplifier. You can probably tell by the picture that he was pretty excited about his gift. Thank you to all of the Fullerton Elks members who give to our Special Child program.
Scott Stephens, PER
Our August Special Child, Gisselle Garcia, is 9 years old. She had been diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL) at the age of 5. She went through 2 years of steady chemotherapy, going through the usual trials that the children do (losing her hair, vomiting and more). But the doctors seem to have nailed it. She has been in remission for 2 years now and only goes in for bi-monthly blood tests.
After being treated to a nice meal (the kids especially loved Manny's Sliders) the whole family was introduced to the lodge members at the meeting. They included Gisselle, her 11 year old brother Ivan, their parents Sarai & Martin and Grandma, Maria. Exalted Ruler, Dick Moore met the family and gave Gisselle his pin and I presented her the Special Child pin. We also gave the family a small framed memento of their visit to our lodge. Then we granted Gisselle's special wish; we gave her tickets for the whole family to Sea World.
Mom was in tears and after asking us to send her copies of all the
pictures, vowed to always remember the Fullerton Elks.
Yours in Service, Scott Stephens, PER
Our September Special Child, Suzie Rodriguez, is 8 years old. She has had RhabdomyoSarcoma since she was 6 years old. It formed as a tumor in her thigh.
RhabdomyoSarcoma is a malignant (cancerous) soft tissue tumor found most often in children. It is a rare tumor with only several hundred new cases a year in the United States. Diagnosis is often delayed because of lack of symptoms, and because the tumor may appear at the same time as a recent injury. However, early diagnosis vitally is important because it is aggressive and spreads quickly.
Suzie's doctors have successfully removed the tumor and she is now
cancer FREE. And her family is extremely pleased with this. However,
the radiation has cause permanent damage to the bones and nerves
in her left leg. At first her leg was curled up so tight she couldn't
use it, but now it is somewhat shortened with limited flexibility.
She requires special shoes and other aids to help her live a normal life.
After treating the family to a nice meal they were brought into the lodge meeting and introduced to the members in attendance. Her parents, Aruselli & Maricio, her big brother, Jr. and her 10 month old sister Jesse all seemed to have a wonderful time.
After Exalted Ruler, Moore presented Suzie with his ER pin I gave her our Special Child pin and gave the family our Special Child thank you plaque. The other chair offices then helped me present Suzie with her gifts, a karaoke machine and several of her favorite music CDs.
Yours in Service
Scott Stephens, PER
Our October Special Child, Arda Barnar, is a 5 year old boy
with Lucemia. He was diagnosed last year and has gone through a full
year of radiation treatments. He currently takes Chemo pills and goes
to the doctors for regular maintenance and T-cell work.Having much difficulty finding us, the family final arrived about 7:45pm and sat down immediately for their complimentary steak & shrimp meal. Exalted Ruler, Dick changed the meeting agenda a bit, so I was still able to give the family a tour of our facility, before going into the lodge room.
We introduced Arda and his family: Zeynep & Enis, his parents; Eren, his 2 year old brother; and grandma, Nurten (visiting from Turkey). Then the Exalted Ruler came down to the Alter to meet them and present Arda with his pin. Arda was then very pleased when he opened his gift of a PSP game and all the extras.
After escorting the family from the lodge room Enis asked me about joining the order and I told him I would get him information about the Mission Viejo lodge (where they live).
If you haven't been to one of these heartwarming meetings, please come
join us the 3rd Thursday of each month. See you on the hill.PER, Scott Stephens
Special Child Chairman
Our November Special Child was 8 year old, Kayla Mella. She has a "Mixed Germ Cell Brain Tumor", which doctors have been able to reduce by 90%, and it’s benign. She also has tumors in her Pituitary and Thyroid, which have caused many complications.
[Photos of Kayla coming soon.]
She has Insipidus (or water diabetes), which means her body doesn’t absorb water easily. Her growth has been affected and she has a hormone imbalance. All in all she is doing quite well. However, at a minimum she’ll be on 3 medications the rest of her life and must continually make sure that she is hydrated.
After the lodge treated Kayla and her family to a pleasant meal, we were brought into the lodge room and introduced to the members assembled. I introduced Kayla, her parents (Paula & Eduardo), her 14 year old brother (Nicolas) and her grandparents (Theresa & David). David was also retired Air Force so he and the Exalted Ruler had much to talk about.
The Exalted Ruler presented Kayla with his pin, I presented her with the Special Child pin and the family with their framed memorial certificate. I spoke briefly about all of Kayla’s wishes and mention how talented she was, including winning a greeting card design contest and being asked to speak at the Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. It was because of these special talents that we present her with all her gifts from Michaels (a plethora of different drawing papers, paints, pencils, projects an easel and a carrying case to take her talents on the road).
The family left me with a very heart-warming greeting card, which was read by the Secretary at the next lodge meeting.
We hope to see you the 3rd Thursday of this month for our next Special Child.
Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens
Our December Special Child was 10 year old Dominic Casillas. Although Dominic was quite shy and overwhelmed by our hospitality he thoroughly enjoyed himself.
He and his sister, Destiny were quite please with their meals
and were going to go home and rub it in their older brothers' faces, who
didn't come because they thought it was going to be another Peanutbutter &
Jelly or Rubber Chicken night. Kudos to our fabulous kitchen and wait staff
for always coming through.
Dominic's parents, Alfred and Bridgette Casillas, were also very pleased
with the hospitality of our lodge and the generosity of our members. There
were very few that didn't get a hug from Bridgette. This family was very
deserving of this evening and very appreciative.
It started when Dominic was 8 with the diagnosis of a brain tumor. The doctors
operated to remove the tumor and he has been undergoing Chemo treatments since
that time. When the surgeons went back in a second time to remove more of the
tumor (which turned out to be only scar tissue), Dominic came out partially
paralyzed. The fact that he beat the odds (a 50% success rate over 10 years
of treatment) it was still hard to accept for such a young boy.
In addition to the wishes we granted for Dominic at the lodge meeting, I have
continued to supply the family with information on physical therapists. In
the hope that one day he will be playing soccer again.Thank you to all who come and support programs like the Special Child.
Yours in Service,
PER, Scott Stephens