All Clear

We just got the word that Aidan's MIBG scan was normal, or as I love to hear, "unremarkable". Thank the Lord!! Thanks for your continued prayers and good thoughts for our guy.

Here we go again...

It's time. The dreaded scan. It's this week. Gulp.
Will this junk ever get any easier? We are scheduled for scans on Thursday. Wednesday, Aidan will be joining me at school for a few hours and then we'll venture downtown to have his injection for his scan the next day. On Thursday, we are scheduled for scanning at 11:00 am. Oh, please, please think of him and say some prayers for our guy. Gratefully, we are back at Children's for our scan. We should have our results a few hours later. It's going to be a tough week waiting. And we all know what a good "waiter" I am...
I will update as soon as I hear something. Think good thoughts, please...

Radiothon Day

Today, (Sept 11) Randy, Aidan, and I will once again be sharing Aidan's story for the 10th Annual Eric and Kathy's Radiothon benefiting Children's Memorial (101.9). Tune in during the 4:00PM hour to hear! We have so many amazing experiences to share. You can watch live via the webcam. Here is the link.
http://www.wtmx.com/microfeatures/radiothon_content.php?pageid=webcam

Click on web cam and you'll be set!
Wish us luck!!

2nd grade...Here He Comes!

As I write this Aidan is preparing for school tomorrow. Is he organizing his backpack? No. Is he laying out his clothes for tomorrow? No. Is he thinking about his new teacher and classmates? No. Aidan is playing X-BOX. A harsh reality is going to shine down on him tomorrow when he has to wake up (before 8:30am) and go to school! So long to the long days of playing with friends, watching SpongeBob, and playing video games. I don't think he is ready.
It has been a terrific summer. We have been blessed with many days at the pool, playing around the house, 2 trips to Great America, and time to be together as a family. It's been awesome. Aidan's last trip to the oncologist, Aug 12, went great. His blood and urine levels were all normal and good. Amen! He has grown, gained weight, and is tan, tan, tan! His hair almost competes with Chloe for super-blondeness. Too cute! We will be scanning again in the next month or so. Also, I want to mention that the annual Eric and Kathy Radiothon, benefiting Children's Memorial, will be Sept 11 and 12th. We were asked to again share Aidan's story. As of now, we are scheduled to be on air Friday, Sept 11 at 4:00 pm for the "drive home". It was great last year, and we are honored to share Aidan's story again. If he gives hope to 1 family out there, then it is soooo worth drudging up painful memories. I always tell people I wish we could have met a kid like Aidan when we were in the thick of treatment. Unfortunately, the stories we heard, the kids we met, did not have the outcome Aidan has had.
So have your radios tuned to 101.9 fm on Sept 11 at 4:00 pm! I will update if anything changes. I hope everyone enjoys the last remaining days of summer.
With Love-

Happy 7th Birthday!

Today is Aidan's 7th birthday! We are so excited to share in this sweet day with him. He played army guys with his new friend, Sam, and chose to go to Denny's for pancakes for dinner! Afterwards we were off to ice cream and back home for presents. Friday will be his friend party- he cannot wait. Chloe has been singing "Happy Birthday" all day long to him-too precious. Blessings abound in our house today. Thanks for your continued prayer and support of our family. 3 more weeks until oncology check-up time. gulp.

A Double Anniversary

Today is a double anniversary for us. 8 years ago I married the love of my life. 2 years ago, Aidan had his first Stem-Cell transplant. July 20 is a pretty significant date in our house. We will be celebrating a little extra tonight. Keep positive thoughts for August 12...Aidan's next oncology check!

A Walk in the Park

We had such a fun day yesterday! Six Flags Great America and Cure Kids Cancer invited Aidan to be the ambassador for Six Flags. It was a beautiful day-hot, but not beastly. Aidan and I both got to speak to a crowd of about 400 people. He wasn't even scared! We should have known. There's not too much that spooks our guy. Randy and Aidan closed the park down last night. I think it may be a new record: 7:00 am -9:30 pm! Chloe and I left around 6:00- we were exhausted. Summer is here and we are ready for fun! Please continue to pray for Aidan. Next labs: August.
Till Next Time,
Carrie

Good News, but Weird News

Finally, after days, hours, minutes we heard back. Dr. Morgan, Aidan's Oncologist, called late this afternoon. She explained that while they couldn't do a thorough study of their own, what they were able to see convinces them that Aidan is fine. There are too many missing pieces for them to think that he has relapsed. The pictures they were able to see were deemed "unremarkable". This is my new word of the week. Since blood, urine, and his overall health are perfect, we are going to consider this just a "blip" on the radar. We will pursue this scan in 3 months at Children's. I have already called my insurance to get the ball rolling.
We feel a sense of relief, but still wish they could have completed their own case study. We have full confidence in Dr. Morgan, as she is a straight-shooter and is very conservative. She assured us that if she thought this was something more, we would be in doing every test under the sun. So, we are back to our normal 3 month check up in August. September we'll try this scan garbage again.
Thank you to our dear friends who have prayed for us, sent us good vibes, and heck, even bought us groceries (thanks, Shawn). How blessed we are to have so many friends and family that love us and our sweet boy. Tonight we went to Moe's, our favorite local hot spot for dinner to celebrate. Even though Aidan has no idea what we've been through these past few days, he was very happy this evening. Give your kids an extra hug tonight-we sure will.

Unreadable AGAIN.

Really, they are unreadable again. Around 11:00 am, Children's called to say that they still cannot read the scans. They are working with IT from Lutheran and IT from Children's. We wait. We wait. We wait. I am not a good waiter. We may have to re-scan at Children's. Are you serious? And then guess what? We'll have to wait again. Meanwhile, the house is a mess. We need to hit the grocery store. And, my poor children want their real mom back. Uff da! The best words I have are, "Calgon...take me away".
-Will update as soon as I know something more.

Still Waiting...

Can you believe we STILL don't know? Today has been such a frustrating day for us. I left at 6:30 am to bring in the scans from Lutheran (which I picked up Sat) for Children's. After waiting for 2 hours, I finally saw the doc, gave her the scans, and was ordered to go home, as they would call me when the scans were read by the radiologist. After arriving home, I receive a call from Children's stating that the scans were "un-readable". Lutheran General needs to re-do the scans in a different format, and then they would Fed-Ex them. Are you kidding? I don't think so. I cannot wait an additional 3-4 days for Fed Ex. Ugh. I left AGAIN, drove to Lutheran, got the scans myself, and drove back to Children's. Now, it is 8:00 pm and still I KNOW NOTHING!!! Frustration is high, patience is low. I truly cannot wait anymore. PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY!!!!!! I go to the worst places possible in my head. Why are they taking so long? Is something horrible on them? Do they need to call in specialists to read them? Why???? What is going on? Pray for answers for us soon...I have 2 kids who would like their normal mommy back; not the crazed, deer-in-headlights one.
I will update as soon as I hear...

Please Pray for us

We received the inconclusive results back from Aidan's scans tonight. We had to wait all day, only to find out that "something" suspicious showed up. It is teeny-tiny and we are unsure what to make of it. Since the scan was done at Lutheran General and NOT at Children's, we have to wait until Monday to get it read by "our people". Aidan's oncologist and stem cell doc both told us to not worry too much about it. Yeah, right. We are scared out of our minds and praying, praying, praying that is nothing. I will be going to Lutheran first thing in the morning to pick up the films so I can be at Children's bright and early Monday morning.
Please pray for Aidan. We are so upset by this. The not-knowing is horrid. I will update as soon as I know something on Monday.

Think Good Thoughts...please.

Aidan had his nuclear injection today. Tomorrow at 1:00 is his scan. He repeats the scan on Thursday. Same time. Same place. PLEASE think good thoughts and say some prayers for our little man. We are struggling tonight. Ugh.

Save the Date

Happy Summer? When WILL the rain stop! Not only was Aidan's last soccer game canceled today, but also a fun Children's Memorial Luau. We are bummed!

As some of you may know, Aidan was asked by Six Flags, to be the "Ambassador for Six Flags Great America" on June 27th. Six Flags is teaming up with the organization Cure Kids Cancer. If you are free on June 27th, we would love to have you sign up and walk on "Team Aidan". All you need to do is to go to http://www.walkintheparks.org. You will need to locate "Great America" and then sign up under "Team Aidan". So far, we are in the Top 10 for fundraising (8th place). Not bad, huh? We would love to see you there.

This is a big week for Aidan. On Tues-Thurs we will be heading down to Lutheran General Hospital to get a nuclear medicine scan called an "MIBG". We have not scanned for a year now, but due to a new neuroblastoma study published, our oncologist wants Aidan to start scanning regularly. This study provides convincing evidence that the best way to detect relapse is through scanning. Our oncologist is an anti-scanner, so for her to recommend this, it's a big deal. Please pray for us, as these scans check him from head to toe. We have been so blessed with clean blood and urine, we just pray that we continue with a clean scan too. On Tuesday, Aidan will get injected with a nuclear dye. No, he doesn't turn orange! It settles in his body and then Wed and Thurs they scan. The scan is the same both days. It apparently gives them a clearer view waiting 24 hours, then 48 hours after injection. It's a lot to digest. Due to insurance purposes, we have to scan at Lutheran, not at Children's. Let's hope that goes well too. Aidan loves Robert, the scanner at Children's. He can do a mean "Spongebob Square Pants" song and dance WITH accent! Ha!

Praying for our friends battling every day. There are just too many kiddos out there battling cancer. Please say extra prayers for them tonight. It is a long and scary road.

Hugs to all,
Carrie

Another Milestone Date

Two years ago today, Dr. Grant Geissler, removed "the beast" that was growing in our son's tummy. An eight hour surgery, he came out with arms stretched, and told us he got it all. There was a cheer by the 15 or so of us that tirelessly waited, prayed, and hoped that day. 2 years. And look how far we have come. God is good.

Good Day

We were back downtown today for Aidan's check. All things were great! Aidan's platelets finally are above 100, 000! (which only has taken like 2 years...) Normal range starts at 140, 000, but platelets are one of those bodily things that takes a long time to recover from (obviously).
When we ended treatment last year, it was decided that Aidan would no longer get scanned. One of the good (I use this term lightly) things about neuroblastoma is that it can be detected in the urine. Dr. Morgan, Aidan's oncologist, did want to scan him anymore unless something was off. She informed us today that a new study is out suggesting that the MIBG scan (a very sensitive nuclear med. scan) is actually more sensitive to relapse than the blood and urine screenings alone. So, we are back to the scans. At this point, we are not sure how often he will get scanned. This will be determined in the next few weeks. We are up for ANYTHING that will help detect relapse sooner. Good thing he won't relapse...and yes, I did inform the doctor of that today!!NO relapses for us!
We have some big insurance decisions to make right now. Please pray for us. Basically, our insurance, which has been great, wants us to leave Children's Memorial because they are out of network. They want us back at our "in-network" diagnosing hospital. How do we leave the hospital that saved our son's life? We have options, although they may just be very pricey ones...
I will post again soon. We will be at Crystal Lake Wal-Mart for a jail and bail later this month. Also, I will post the scan date, as we will DEFINITELY need lots of good thoughts and prayers on that day. Don't forget about the Great America Walk June 27th! We hope you will be there to walk on "Team Aidan"!!

Till Next Time...

That Funny Feeling

So that "feeling" is back. Aidan has his 3 month check-up next week. I am starting to look at him in a strange way...last night I actually took a flashlight in his room and examined his legs and arms for any strange bruising while he slept. Help! I am a crazed mom. What have I resorted to? :) Bruising due to unknown reasons is a red flag for the docs. It could be indicative that something is wrong. I think I need next week to be here now!
With my craziness in mind, will you send up extra prayers for us right now. With all the flu junk going around, I am a nervous wreck. Yes, his immune system is great, but STILL. I can't shake that funny feeling. Also say a prayer that our new blood draw clinic works out. We can no longer get our labs done at Children's (insurance, of course) and honestly, we have had NO luck finding a place that's close AND can work well on kids. Luckily, we have a new site available to us in Gurnee that isn't an hour away. Amen! Now, let's hope they have the patience for Aidan AND Randy. :)
Hoping all is well in your part of the world. Please keep us in your prayers. We need them.

Rain, Rain Go Away!

For those of us living in and near Chicago, it has been raining for what feels like days! We were suppose to attend the "Celebrate Life" festival through Children's today. It is a once-a-year celebration for children that have had transplants; whether it's stem cell, lung, liver, heart, etc. Unfortunately due to the cold, wet, and rain, we opted out. We are all teetering with colds.
We had another wonderful event last weekend. We were invited to attend a gala event for Ace Hardware in Oak Brook. Ace, is a wonderful contributor to the Children's Miracle Network. Last year they raised something like over $600, 000. Wow! It was a wine tasting, silent/live auction, and dinner. My mom-in-laws favorite handyman, Lou
Manfredini, was the host. It was a blast! Randy spoke so beautifully, and left everyone in tears. Part of his speech included excerpts from a piece entitled, "The Monster", which I included below. It was written by a fellow neuroblastoma parent. It's incredibly powerful and poignant.
In June Aidan will take his ambassadorship to new heights! (literally) Aidan has been named "Ambassador for Six Flags Great America"! Wowsers. Cool, huh? Six Flags and Cure Kids Cancer organization will be hosting an event called "A Walk in the Park". Check out the specifics at www.walkintheparks.org. We are hoping to get a "Team Aidan" together. The date in Saturday, June 27th. We will be speaking and sharing Aidan's story. After the walk, we are free to play in the park for the rest of the day! It should be a blast. We hope you can make it.
Our next Oncology appointment is May 20th. I am already a nervous wreck. Please pray for a clean bill of health. Hugs to you all and Happy Spring!

The Monster

There's a monster. It lives in our house.
It moved in a long time ago. It must have been hiding in the walls because we didn't notice him for the longest time. But it was there. It's the funniest thing because I never really believed in monsters. I thought they were the stuff of fairy tales. Imaginary beasts that people made up to explain their fears. They weren't real though. Were they?

But now I know they are real. The thing about monsters is they're not just big and scary and with sharp teeth. Bears are big and scary with sharp teeth, but they're not monsters. The difference is that the monster has a malevolent streak. It's not there because it wants to eat your garbage; it's there because it means to do you harm. Disney got it all wrong in Monsters Inc. Don't believe it. That's all imaginary. Those kinds of cute cuddly monsters don't exist. Steven King has it right.

The monster sometimes comes into our room at night and slithers underneath the bed. Its hot breath comes right through the mattress. It leaves me sweating, scared, unable to sleep. And then a chill settles in like the window was left open on a January night.

We’ve tried to kill it a dozen times. Sometimes it seems like we’re winning, but still it won’t die. And even if we kill it, I have this terrible feeling it will come back from the dead like just like in the sequel to a bad horror movie.

It's a clever beast and follows us wherever we go. There’s no escape. We can never see it because it hides in the shadows, but it’s always there and has ways of making its presence known. We can’t live a normal life.

When we got the dog, we thought maybe he would scare the monster away. The dog is smart and brave, but somehow he doesn't see the monster. The monster, though, is keeping its distance. But somehow I think it might be smarter than the dog and just waiting for its moment.

Try to explain a monster to your friends. They can hear what we’re saying, but they don’t quite believe us. We still have all of our body parts, and none of us has quite gone insane. They’ve never seen the monster even though they’ve been to the house. Still they get the sense that something isn’t quite right. Some of them keep their distance. Now we just smile and say, "Oh the monster...he’s gone back inside the wall. We’re doing fine."

Sometimes our monster doesn't seem so scary. On a sunny day, when the kids run in the park laughing and playing, we forget that it’s back there waiting for us. You have to forget for a while, or it will get inside your mind and drive you over the edge.

There are professionals who know how to deal with monsters. Ordinary folks never meet them other than on a social basis. We feel better when we're with the professionals. They seem to know what they're doing. But at night when we are home alone, there is just us... and the monster. The chill returns.

There's a monster. It lives in our house. It lives in our boy.

Just Kidding

NBC informed us that they will be airing Aidan's story tomorrow (Wed) not today at 5:00 pm on Channel 5. Apparently they did not receive the footage in time to edit and air. So...check out the news tomorrow!!

In the News...

NBC 5 (in Chicago) will be running a feature story on Aidan tomorrow(Tues, March 31) at 5:00 pm. Check it out! Enjoy! Still working on pics, by the way!
Hugs to all-

Back to reality

Chloe is asleep. Randy and Aidan are at school. I am trying to sort through piles of clothes, papers, and bags. Back to reality. I am not sure if any of us will be able to really explain/describe what this experience has been like for us. We have returned totally humbled by all of this. What a kid we have. The love in his heart for other kids, some who are really struggling, was an awesome sight to behold.
Our last night in D.C was a blast! We went to ESPN Zone for one last party with all of our friends. Country singer, Mark Wills, sang some incredible songs for us. One song in particular, "Don't Laugh at Me", broke all of our hearts. There wasn't a dry eye in the place, including Mark's. The song related to all of us. Whether our kids were/are bald from chemo, missing limbs, being burned, being disfigured, etc, we could all relate to the cruelty that our kids have faced. On top of everything else they have to suffer through, just one more obstacle to face. I haven't been able to get that song out of my head. It's right up there with "He's My Son", by Mark Schultz, for heartbreakers.
Miss America entertained us with our friend Elmo from Sesame Street! The kids loved the surprise of Elmo. After an awesome dinner, we were turned loose to play on gift cards supplied by Wal-mart. The kids had a blast. So, at the end of the night, Team South Carolina, New Mexico, and Illinois were left! Our 3 families closed down the place! We are total PARTY animals! The dads might have had more fun than the kids! LOL. We said goodbye, exchanging emails, tears, and hugs. We really met incredible people.
We woke up early, caught our flight home, and were greeted by Grandma Stotz with "Welcome Back" balloons for Aidan! Thanks for those, Grandma! We raced home to Chloe, who couldn't stop screaming and laughing at us! We cried and hugged her. She then started chasing Aidan and Cooper around the house. How we missed our little lady.
I do have some more pictures to post. When my computer is willing to work with me, I will post some final pictures of our "Champions Celebration".
I want to give a huge THANK YOU to the Children's Miracle Network. What an AMAZING organization they are. Their passionate dedication to children is inspiring. I thank them for allowing the little Stotz family from Illinois to represent the over 17 million children they treat each year. They are just incredible. I will post again with pics later.
Till next time and many loads of laundry later-

Umm. Hi Mr. President!

Guess what we did this morning? Ummm. We MET President Obama! Woo-hoo! And not only that, but Aidan played on Sasha and Malia's new playground! Am I kidding? NOPE! It was unreal. I am grinning from ear to ear right now. We arrived at the White House, only to be told that the Prime Minister of Australia was currently with the President so we would have to wait. I guess that's okay. LOL. Finally we were able to enter the White House and walk through many rooms. How cool. The history! The artwork! The furniture!
We were led outside for a group picture on the steps and then President Obama came out. He shook every child's hand (Aidan's twice, but who's counting) and took a picture with us all. He then allowed the kids to answer questions. One of the champions asked what he was planning on doing about children's health care. Yes! How I LOVE these Champion kids! He said it was his goal to ensure every child has access to quality health care. Then, he announced that the kids could play on Sasha and Malia's playground! Check out my pics. Unbelievable.
Tonight is our farewell party. We are going to the ESPN Zone. Country singer, Mark Wills, will be performing for us. It should be a blast. We are all getting so sad about leaving each other. What a blessing these families are to us. How better of people we are to know them. I will try to update later. We head out to the airport early tomorrow morning. We can't wait to see our Chloe girl.

Senator Stotz, I presume

Well, our Senator Stotz has been busy today. After a quick bus tour of our nation's capitol, we stopped by Grant's statue for a great picture of the Champions and their families. It was fun to see them all together. Next, we headed to the Dirksen Federal Building to have a Senate luncheon. We were eager to see if anyone from Illinois would represent. Senator Burris send as assistant to meet us. Of course she was from the North Shore and grew up close to where I teach! Weird.
We then went back to the hotel, changed, and headed off to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. Aidan had fun exploring all of the offerings. We are now back at the hotel and ready for a night of swimming at the pool and hanging out with new friends. We are loving some of the new families we have met. What great fun they are. Tomorrow will be thrill...as we are meeting President Obama in the afternoon. I will try, Miss Shaban's 1st grade class, to deliver the wonderful letters you wrote. Security is tight, but I will try! Tomorrow night is the send-off party at ESPN Zone. We are so sad to think about leaving these wonderful families. Thanks for the nice notes many of you are leaving. I share them with Aidan. He loves it! Can't wait to update everyone tomorrow. What a thrill!
Till next time...

Private Jets and more

We took a PRIVATE jet today to Washington D.C! Delta Airlines provided a jet for the Champion families, Children's Miracle Network employees, and of course, Miss America and Mark Wills. Such is life. After a great lunch in-flight (it WAS good), a movie, some candy and beverages, we landed! We then got on our sweet tour bus and headed to our hotel. We are staying literally down the street from Barack (he prefers to keep his friends close, so considerate!). Tomorrow we lunch with our state senators...hmmm. Durbin? Burris? Scandals?? Many with us on the trip get a good laugh over our political crises. Tuesday we go over to White House and hang with the Pres! Wowsers.
We are feeling pretty exhausted today. Yesterday, we DID Disney. We began our morning at Epcot, then headed to Magic Kingdom. We literally closed the place. We finally went to bed around 1:00 am. Oye. It was a blast. Our Disney resort, Coronado Springs, was wonderful. We had a totally incredible time in Florida.
Good Night to all our friends and family. I will be posting some good pics tomorrow and I am sure I will have some good stories about our lunch! Ha! Nitey Night.

Illinois' 2009 Champion!

A Day in the Sun

The first picture is from todays medal ceremony. Yes, that is Miss America with Aidan! Ha! The next picture are Aidan's proud parents... And finally, Safari Aidan, as we traveled to Animal Kingdom today! It was a perfect day: sunny and warm. The rides were great, although I should have reconsidered riding the "Everest" roller coaster. Ugh. I am still queasy. We opted to come back to the resort early and have tomorrow be our marathon day. We are planning on Epcot and Hollywood Studios. It should be a blast! Tonight there is a black-tie gala for all the sponsors. Aidan's video, created by 101.9 The Mix for the radiothon, is nominated! Who knew! As I sit outside the banquet room (this is the only place I can get online) I am amazed by the excitement and enthusiasm of the sponsors. How blessed we are to be supported in such a way.
If any of you are interested in reading about the other incredible families here with us, you can search "Children's Miracle Network" and once on the site, click "Meet the Champions from your state". You can choose different states and read about them. Aidan has become buddies with Hannah from South Carolina, Landon from Alaska, Nathan from Maine, and of course, many others!
Thanks for checking our blog! Have I mentioned how incredible this is yet...
Hugs from Florida!

Gold Medals and Celebrities!

Last night we were entertained by Dancing With the Stars dancer and Country Music singer, Julianne Hough. It was a super fun concert and before we knew it, Aidan was up front, on stage, dancing, and taking pictures with Julianne! It was too hilarious. Only Aidan.
Randy and I are completely overwhelmed by this experience. The kids, families, activities planned, everything...it is just incredible. We had a wonderful dinner last night with the families and were able to spend some time getting to know them. Each child gives a "gift" for the other champions. Aidan passed out his super-cool Aidan Stotz trading cards. We then got a chance to meet and thank all of the sponsors for the Children's Miracle Network. Organizations like Walmart, Remax, Dairy Queen, and many others are huge supporters. Aidan was asked to autograph their books, and to take many pictures. After that, we had the huge party! Football player, Steve Young put on a puppet show, and then we rocked out with Julianne. Aidan was exhausted, sunburned, and ready for bed.
This morning was by far, them most emotional and memorable of all. Each "Champion" was brought on stage, in front of hundreds, and was given a medal. Mary Lou Retton spoke, and Miss America and Country singer, Mark Wills, introduced each champ. Aidan received his medal, waved, and danced off the stage jumping up and down. Even as I write this, tears are streaming down my face. How unbelievably proud I am of him. What he has overcome, well, he is such a miracle. We are so grateful to be here. It is a DREAM!
WE are heading out to Animal Kingdom today. I will update later. Oh, and we did receive a personal invitation from Barack Obama. He wants to meet each of the Champions at his house, The White House. Seriously? Wowsers.

If any of our Millburn friends are reading this, Aidan misses you all! Oh, and Miss Shaban, Aidan is obsessing about getting his homework done! Haha! And my Marie Murphy students: you better be good for Mrs. Swoboda! LOL.

Hugs to you ALL!!
With Love from sunny Florida- did I mention it's 83 degrees today? ha!

Beyond incredible!

I really can't think of better words than those. I promise I will post more later tonight, as we have a special dinner to attend in 5 minutes and I just now was able to get a wireless connection. Aidan is having THE time of his life. We are meeting the most incredible kids and families. Wow!

Aidan's Story

Aidan Stotz
Age 6
Children’s Memorial Hospital
Cancer

It all started with stomach pain. After going to the ER for several medical tests, Aidan Stotz was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a form of childhood cancer. Aidan immediately began a yearlong series of treatments at Children’s Memorial Hospital. He underwent aggressive chemotherapy, radiation, a triple stem cell transplant, and had a tumor removed. Although these treatments were hard on his little body, they were a success.

“We’re forever grateful to Children’s Memorial,” said his mom. “The staff made him feel like a superstar every time he walked through the doors. It’s an unbelievable place, and we couldn’t have asked for better care.”

Today, 6-year-old Aidan doesn’t even realize all he’s been through. According to Aidan, he had a sick tummy and now he’s better. His confidence, empathy, sense of humor and overall passion for life contributed to this amazing outlook.

Aidan loves to play soccer, enjoys video games and wrestling with his dad, and hopes to be an astronaut someday.

About Walmart and Sam's Club

Wal-Mart has supported Children’s Miracle Network since 1987. Since then, Children’s Miracle Network and Wal-Mart have worked tirelessly together to help children by raising money for children’s hospitals. Walmart and Sam’s Club associates, customers and members have raised more than $460 million for children’s hospitals during the relationship. This is the first year Walmart and Sam’s Club have sponsored the Champions Across America program.

Champions Across America presented by Walmart and Sam's Club

Champions Across America presented by Walmart and Sam’s Club is a Children's Miracle Network program that brings attention to the important work being done at children’s hospitals by honoring remarkable children who have faced severe medical challenges.

The Champions Across America program designates a Champion child in every state who has bravely battled a serious injury or illness. The Champions represent the nearly 17 million children treated at Children’s Miracle Network hospitals every year. The 2009 Champions have dealt with a wide variety of injuries and illnesses including brittle bone disease, brain tumors and cerebral palsy, as well as surviving car accidents and plane crashes.

As part of Champions Across America, the Champions travel for a week – first to Florida to meet Children’s Miracle Network sponsors, hospital and media partners who all convene to celebrate a year of medical miracles during the Children’s Miracle Network Celebration event at Walt Disney World Resort. The group will then travel to Washington, D.C., where Champions traditionally meet with their state senators on Capitol Hill, and the President of the United States during a visit to The White House.