Two-month-old Mason was an adorable, smiley, chubby baby with irresistibly kissable cheeks!
Having suffered the loss of a baby just a year earlier, Mason was a cherished blessing for parents Enjay and Casey. In dad Enjay’s words, “Mason was every parent’s dream. He was happy, he was vibrant, and he was healthy. Life was perfect.”
But then came the afternoon that would flip the family’s world upside down. As Enjay was planting kisses on Mason’s chubby cheeks, he felt a small lump in Mason’s neck.
Initially assuming it was a swollen gland, Enjay and Casey went to the doctor to investigate. A round of antibiotics made no difference, so more testing was ordered. When all results proved inconclusive, the family was sent to a specialist children’s hospital, over 500km away from home.
Following a traumatic series of tests on their tiny baby, doctors delivered the news no parent wants to hear: “Your baby has cancer”. Enjay recalls, “I was shocked. Did she just say my baby had cancer? Casey and I looked at each other, and without a word being spoken, we knew our nightmare had started.”
For mum Casey, pure shock was also her overriding emotion.
“The day we got the diagnosis, it hit me like a truck. I was a deer in the headlights and had no way to comprehend what I had just heard. My first question to myself was “what now?”. We were facing the unknown and the uncertainty was unbearable.”
Doctors advised Mason would start treatment immediately. He would need 46 weeks of intense chemotherapy, and six months of maintenance therapy on top of that. They would not be going home for a while.
Knowing they would have to re-locate, Casey also knew she would have to ask her three older children to make an agonising choice.
Casey’s son Ariki, 13, chose to relocate with his mum and brother. But daughters Mia, 15, and Riverlee, 9, made the heartbreaking decision to stay behind and go to school.
For a family torn apart by illness and distance, the Starlight Express Room was the perfect place to reconnect over the holidays.
When Mia and Riverlee would travel to spend time with their mum and brothers, the Starlight Express Room was their home away from home. While Mason was unable to join them because of his isolation, Casey was often treated to the sight of her older three children playing happily through Starlight TV as took care of her baby on the ward.
“The Starlight Express Room is a kids’ wonderland! My older kids benefitted greatly. They got to go and hang out and forget what was going on for a while. For us as parents, we got to relax a little bit, knowing our kids were taken care of and having a ball. Captain Starlight treated them like stars even though they weren’t ‘sick kids’, they were still made to feel important as siblings.”
When Casey and Enjay learned that Mason would be granted a Starlight Wish they knew just what to ask for. With the pain and the stress of their family separation still fresh in their minds, a camper trailer seemed the perfect choice. Now Enjay and Casey can take the whole family travelling, enjoying the amazing beaches that surround them, and creating some beautiful family memories along the way.
Enjay and Casey are so thankful for the impact Starlight has had on their entire family in the darkest moments in their lives, like Captain Starlight dropping by on Mason’s first birthday in hospital, delivering a present and celebratory song to brighten the day.
“If it wasn’t for Starlight giving my girls somewhere fun to go and be happy, they may not have visited Mason in hospital as much. Our older son practically lived in the Starlight Express Room. He could go and relax and be entertained when so much of our attention had to go to Mason. And now, thanks to Mason’s Starlight Wish, we will be able to travel as a family, making lifelong memories together. It’s a gift that will continue to give to our family.”
