3-Year-Old Cancer Patient Tells Friend She's Going to Disneyland
— -- There's nothing quite like a chat with a good friend to get you excited for an upcoming trip -- even when that friend is 3 years old.
"Juni! You're going to Disneeeylaaaand!" Violet, 3, squealed in a bon voyage video to her friend, Juniper, 3.
The girls were cancer treatment buddies battling retinoblastoma, a rare form of cancer that starts in the eye. They had similar requests for the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Violet wanted to meet Mickey Mouse. And Juniper wanted to meet Minnie Mouse.
Violet went to Disneyland first, and when she heard her buddy Juniper was going, she wanted to send her off with a farewell video -- while wearing a Cinderella costume, of course.
"You're going to twirl like a princess," she said, demonstrating. "And do your princes pose. And wave like a princess."
Violet told her friend about everything she could expect to see, including "Mickey and Minnie nose-kisses."
Disney is ABC News' parent company.
"Juni, I'm so happy your wish is coming true," Violet said into the camera. "I love you."
In her sign-off, Violet held up a Minnie stuffed animal, waved its hand and (in an even littler voice) said "buh-bye!"
Juniper's mom, Danielle Ouellette, told ABC News that having Violet and her family around during their 6 months of chemotherapy was a huge help. She said they called the duo "the flower girls," because Juniper and Violet are both named for flowers.
When Juniper saw Violet's video, she kept repeating "That’s my violet! That’s my friend!" Ouellette said. She said it didn't click that she was going to Disneyland until she saw the castle when they arrived.
Today, Juniper is 3 and a half years old and in remission, her mom said.
"I couldn't have asked for better closure for what we've gone through," she said.
Although the girls have both already visited the park, Make-a-Wish posted the video on YouTube this week.
“The video has captured our hearts here at Make-A-Wish and we are excited to see that Violet and Juni were so enthusiastic about meeting Minnie and Mickey Mouse," said Make-A-Wish spokesperson Josh deBerge. "The two tiny voices of a 3-year-old and a 4-year-old paint the perfect, simple picture of what we do at Make-A-Wish every day: give hope and strength to kids battling life-threatening medical conditions, helping them feel better and sometimes, even get better."
The organization has 61 chapters nationwide and grants 14,000 wishes a year, he said.
