Make-A-Wish sends Mars family to Florida
MARS — The Patora-Skaneski family from Mars had a trip to Disney World planned for 2020, but it would take two more years before they actually made it to the park.
Aside from the COVID-19 pandemic, the trip was scrapped when 3-year-old Skyla Patora was diagnosed with a form of leukemia in May. She had to immediately go into treatment at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh.
When the family finally took the trip in October, it was the result of multiple factors aligning, including recent updates in Skyla’s treatment and Make-A-Wish policy, according to Skyla’s mother, Michelle Skaneski.
“It was just this past summer that one, the doctor cleared her to travel in the fall, and two, Make-A-Wish opened up for travel wishes,” Skaneski said. “In the late summer, we started to be able to plan, and she was granted the wish to go down to Disney for three days, two at Universal and one at SeaWorld.
“It was a moment to be normal.”
Skaneski said her family was introduced to Make-A-Wish early in Skyla’s treatment process. With the family already planning a Disney World trip, and Skyla’s affinity for the movie “Frozen,” picking a wish to be granted was easy.
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