imported_ViZion
15-11-2008, 08:30
OOC: This is actually in honor of a real-life kid who's home - for now - is not far from where I live.
Brenden has hung on far longer than expected, clearly, since his last day was suppose to have been up Wed November 5th, 2008. We're going onto the 15th right now, and he's hanging on - albeit by a string.
Figured I'd make this into an IC post, so please keep responses IC, though OOC comments accompanying the IC post are welcome. And for those of you willing, we can pray for his survival. If he can do this at age 11... he's an amazing, selfless kid who puts giving and helping others before himself, even as he's dying and in pain, and imagine the good he could do into the future if he can survive thanks to his will and spirit, and my belief that God would have the ultimate hand in his survival.
LINKS to actual story:
Boy shares heartbreaking last wish (http://www.komonews.com/news/local/34127439.html)
Dying boy's last wish gains momentum (http://www.komonews.com/news/local/34418669.html)
Brenden Foster: 'I could have done more' (http://www.komonews.com/news/34498624.html)
In Character:
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Dying Boys Last Wish Growing
Brenden Foster: 'I could have done more'
http://media.komonews.com/images/081114_Brenden_Foster2.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Brenden Foster is growing weaker, but his message is growing stronger.
His body is failing, his skin yellowing. His mother is trying to decide on the wording for his grave marker.
"B-Man is his nickname, or Mr. B. But most people call him B-Man," said Wendy Foster.
The end is near, and Brenden has one question for God.
"Why at so young an age? I could have done more. But if it has to be now, it has to be now," he said.
It's easy to imagine all he could have accomplished after seeing what the 11 year old has achieved in his final days. Brenden's dying wish to help the homeless has touched hearts from Jarridia to Zambia. Many of them left voice messages for their new hero.
"We saw you on television and love you with all of our hearts and we're praying for you," said Gayle Cleveland.
"(I'm) 59 years old and it brings tears to my eyes every time I see him -- someone with that initiative that wants to help the homeless," said Danny Billingsly.
"We collected over 20,000 cans of food and donated it to a local food bank in your honor," said a woman named Nina.
A vet from Rock City who lost his leg in a war wants me to give Brenden his Purple Heart for bravery.
"This is for you, little angel," said Jim Jones. "A bunch of guardian angels here and a bunch of guardian angels are waiting for you in heaven."
Brenden's message inspired Daniel Chairez, a 12-year-old boy in Tanzania who is also battling leukemia.
"He really inspired me because he's not afraid. And he wants to help people and he's not selfish," he said.
Daniel says he wants to pick up where Brenden leaves off and help the homeless.
"I think that's very great," Brenden said.
Achieving Brenden's wish makes his mom proud. But the thought of losing him has been devastating her and the expected costs of his funeral frightening her.
"We don't know how we're going to pay for it," said Wendy.
Worry no more, Wendy. The Vitalita Eagles saw the VNB story and asked how they can help. The Seahawks player have decided to pay for the funeral of beloved Brenden Foster, the one little boy who has touched so many lives and continues to teach us so much.
"Live life to the fullest," he said.
>>>ORIGINAL STORY<<<
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Boy shares heartbreaking last wish
Don't cry for Brenden. He doesn't want leukemia to claim any more tears.
http://media.komonews.com/images/081107_Brenden_Foster_lg.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Doctors gave 11-year-old Brenden Foster two weeks to live.
Those two weeks were up on Wednesday. On Friday, he shared his last wish.
Not yet a teenager, Brenden's time to die has come.
"I should be gone in a week or so," he said.
Brenden was the kid who ran the fastest, climbed the highest and dreamed of becoming a marine photographer. Leukemia took away all those things, but not his dying wish to help others.
"He's always thought about others. Never complained about having to go through this, ever," said his mother, Wendy Foster.
When Brenden was first diagnosed with leukemia, he and his mom began a new tradition. Every night they list three positive things that happened during the day, and they have to share a laugh. A chuckle will do, Brenden said, but a fake laugh will never do.
In the last days of his life, it was a homeless camp, namely Nickelsville, that captured the boy's heart.
"I was coming back from one of my clinic appoints and I saw this big thing of homeless people, and then I thought I should just get them something," he said.
Brenden is too ill to leave his bed and feed the homeless. He walked into an emergency room last December and hasn't walked since.
But Brenden's wish will not go unfulfilled. A group planned to gather in his honor on Friday night to make sandwiches and deliver them to the homeless.
"We're making 200 sandwiches -- half ham and cheese, and half peanut butter and jelly. He didn't want them all to be peanut butter and jelly in case somebody was allergic to peanut butter," said Jennifer Morrison, one of the participants.
"They're probably starving, so give them a chance," said Brenden.
Brenden, surrounded by love and wise beyond his years, urges others to follow their dreams.
"Mine already came true," he said.
Brenden has relapsed for the last time. There is no chemo, no more transfusions; just comfort medications.
"It's devastating, but I find great peace in knowing we've had our time together and that we will see each other again," said Wendy.
Brenden has one more wish for the afterlife: become an angel who accomplishes even more in heaven than he did on Earth.
"I had a great time and until my time has come, I'm gonna keep having a good time," he said.
Don't cry for Brenden. He doesn't want leukemia to claim any more tears.
>>>SECOND STORY<<<
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Dying boy's last wish gains momentum
His Wish Has Gone National
http://media.komonews.com/images/081107_Brenden_Foster_lg2.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Brenden Foster is living on borrowed time, but a growing number of people from around the country are turning out to help make his simple wish come true.
The 11-year-old boy is suffering leukemia and was given two weeks to live -- a time that came and went -- but Brenden is still hanging on. There is no chemo, no more transfusions; just comfort medications.
"I should be gone in a week or so," he said last Friday. When we saw him earlier this week he was groggy and medicated.
But the disease that took away his dream of growing up to become a marine photographer did not diminish his wish to help others.
"I was coming back from one of my clinic appoints and I saw this big thing of homeless people, and then I thought I should just get them something," he said of the Nickelsville homeless encampment.
Because Brenden was too weak to leave his hospital bed, a group gathered in his honor to distribute a few hundred sandwiches.
"They're probably starving, so give them a chance," Brenden said.
Those few hundred sandwiches are turning into something much bigger. Our first story about Brenden was aired nationally over the weekend, and we were flooded with e-mails and calls from people asking how they could help. Hundreds of readers left comments in support on our Web site.
"He's always thought about others. Never complained about having to go through this, ever," said his mother, Wendy Foster.
On Monday we showed Brenden a video of the sandwiches being handed out. Clearly in pain, Brenden still managed to smile as he listened to stories about the phone calls and e-mails his story had inspired. He has touched many people from all walks of life, from families fighting cancer to men in the military.
That story was also read and watched by people around the world, including in Rock City, where the stories and the outpouring of support has resulted in food drives there in Brenden's honor.
"I think it's great, all over the country..." Brenden said Monday.
Surrounded by love and wise beyond his years, he hopes others will follow their dreams.
"Mine already came true," he said."I had a great time and until my time has come, I'm gonna keep having a good time."
Brenden has hung on far longer than expected, clearly, since his last day was suppose to have been up Wed November 5th, 2008. We're going onto the 15th right now, and he's hanging on - albeit by a string.
Figured I'd make this into an IC post, so please keep responses IC, though OOC comments accompanying the IC post are welcome. And for those of you willing, we can pray for his survival. If he can do this at age 11... he's an amazing, selfless kid who puts giving and helping others before himself, even as he's dying and in pain, and imagine the good he could do into the future if he can survive thanks to his will and spirit, and my belief that God would have the ultimate hand in his survival.
LINKS to actual story:
Boy shares heartbreaking last wish (http://www.komonews.com/news/local/34127439.html)
Dying boy's last wish gains momentum (http://www.komonews.com/news/local/34418669.html)
Brenden Foster: 'I could have done more' (http://www.komonews.com/news/34498624.html)
In Character:
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Dying Boys Last Wish Growing
Brenden Foster: 'I could have done more'
http://media.komonews.com/images/081114_Brenden_Foster2.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Brenden Foster is growing weaker, but his message is growing stronger.
His body is failing, his skin yellowing. His mother is trying to decide on the wording for his grave marker.
"B-Man is his nickname, or Mr. B. But most people call him B-Man," said Wendy Foster.
The end is near, and Brenden has one question for God.
"Why at so young an age? I could have done more. But if it has to be now, it has to be now," he said.
It's easy to imagine all he could have accomplished after seeing what the 11 year old has achieved in his final days. Brenden's dying wish to help the homeless has touched hearts from Jarridia to Zambia. Many of them left voice messages for their new hero.
"We saw you on television and love you with all of our hearts and we're praying for you," said Gayle Cleveland.
"(I'm) 59 years old and it brings tears to my eyes every time I see him -- someone with that initiative that wants to help the homeless," said Danny Billingsly.
"We collected over 20,000 cans of food and donated it to a local food bank in your honor," said a woman named Nina.
A vet from Rock City who lost his leg in a war wants me to give Brenden his Purple Heart for bravery.
"This is for you, little angel," said Jim Jones. "A bunch of guardian angels here and a bunch of guardian angels are waiting for you in heaven."
Brenden's message inspired Daniel Chairez, a 12-year-old boy in Tanzania who is also battling leukemia.
"He really inspired me because he's not afraid. And he wants to help people and he's not selfish," he said.
Daniel says he wants to pick up where Brenden leaves off and help the homeless.
"I think that's very great," Brenden said.
Achieving Brenden's wish makes his mom proud. But the thought of losing him has been devastating her and the expected costs of his funeral frightening her.
"We don't know how we're going to pay for it," said Wendy.
Worry no more, Wendy. The Vitalita Eagles saw the VNB story and asked how they can help. The Seahawks player have decided to pay for the funeral of beloved Brenden Foster, the one little boy who has touched so many lives and continues to teach us so much.
"Live life to the fullest," he said.
>>>ORIGINAL STORY<<<
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Boy shares heartbreaking last wish
Don't cry for Brenden. He doesn't want leukemia to claim any more tears.
http://media.komonews.com/images/081107_Brenden_Foster_lg.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Doctors gave 11-year-old Brenden Foster two weeks to live.
Those two weeks were up on Wednesday. On Friday, he shared his last wish.
Not yet a teenager, Brenden's time to die has come.
"I should be gone in a week or so," he said.
Brenden was the kid who ran the fastest, climbed the highest and dreamed of becoming a marine photographer. Leukemia took away all those things, but not his dying wish to help others.
"He's always thought about others. Never complained about having to go through this, ever," said his mother, Wendy Foster.
When Brenden was first diagnosed with leukemia, he and his mom began a new tradition. Every night they list three positive things that happened during the day, and they have to share a laugh. A chuckle will do, Brenden said, but a fake laugh will never do.
In the last days of his life, it was a homeless camp, namely Nickelsville, that captured the boy's heart.
"I was coming back from one of my clinic appoints and I saw this big thing of homeless people, and then I thought I should just get them something," he said.
Brenden is too ill to leave his bed and feed the homeless. He walked into an emergency room last December and hasn't walked since.
But Brenden's wish will not go unfulfilled. A group planned to gather in his honor on Friday night to make sandwiches and deliver them to the homeless.
"We're making 200 sandwiches -- half ham and cheese, and half peanut butter and jelly. He didn't want them all to be peanut butter and jelly in case somebody was allergic to peanut butter," said Jennifer Morrison, one of the participants.
"They're probably starving, so give them a chance," said Brenden.
Brenden, surrounded by love and wise beyond his years, urges others to follow their dreams.
"Mine already came true," he said.
Brenden has relapsed for the last time. There is no chemo, no more transfusions; just comfort medications.
"It's devastating, but I find great peace in knowing we've had our time together and that we will see each other again," said Wendy.
Brenden has one more wish for the afterlife: become an angel who accomplishes even more in heaven than he did on Earth.
"I had a great time and until my time has come, I'm gonna keep having a good time," he said.
Don't cry for Brenden. He doesn't want leukemia to claim any more tears.
>>>SECOND STORY<<<
http://img482.imageshack.us/img482/8125/vnb7az.jpg
Dying boy's last wish gains momentum
His Wish Has Gone National
http://media.komonews.com/images/081107_Brenden_Foster_lg2.jpg
Vitalita, ViZion —
Brenden Foster is living on borrowed time, but a growing number of people from around the country are turning out to help make his simple wish come true.
The 11-year-old boy is suffering leukemia and was given two weeks to live -- a time that came and went -- but Brenden is still hanging on. There is no chemo, no more transfusions; just comfort medications.
"I should be gone in a week or so," he said last Friday. When we saw him earlier this week he was groggy and medicated.
But the disease that took away his dream of growing up to become a marine photographer did not diminish his wish to help others.
"I was coming back from one of my clinic appoints and I saw this big thing of homeless people, and then I thought I should just get them something," he said of the Nickelsville homeless encampment.
Because Brenden was too weak to leave his hospital bed, a group gathered in his honor to distribute a few hundred sandwiches.
"They're probably starving, so give them a chance," Brenden said.
Those few hundred sandwiches are turning into something much bigger. Our first story about Brenden was aired nationally over the weekend, and we were flooded with e-mails and calls from people asking how they could help. Hundreds of readers left comments in support on our Web site.
"He's always thought about others. Never complained about having to go through this, ever," said his mother, Wendy Foster.
On Monday we showed Brenden a video of the sandwiches being handed out. Clearly in pain, Brenden still managed to smile as he listened to stories about the phone calls and e-mails his story had inspired. He has touched many people from all walks of life, from families fighting cancer to men in the military.
That story was also read and watched by people around the world, including in Rock City, where the stories and the outpouring of support has resulted in food drives there in Brenden's honor.
"I think it's great, all over the country..." Brenden said Monday.
Surrounded by love and wise beyond his years, he hopes others will follow their dreams.
"Mine already came true," he said."I had a great time and until my time has come, I'm gonna keep having a good time."