As Kaylah Gonzalez got off the school bus Wednesday afternoon, she wondered why there were so many people gathered outside her South Elgin home. Then Chicago Bears mascot Staley Da Bear walked across the lawn to greet her with a hug.
Staley surprised the 14-year-old with an all-expenses-paid trip this weekend to Green Bay, Wisconsin, and tickets to see the Bears/Packers game Sunday night at Lambeau Field.
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The surprise was “crazy,” said Kaylah, who’s a big Bears fan like her dad, Luis.
“I’m just ready to go to a game. I’ve never been to a game so I’m excited,” the South Elgin High School freshman said.
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Kaylah was recommended for the trip by her doctor at Advocate Children’s Hospital, whose parent company, Advocate Health, is partnering with the Bears on the surprise.
The teen will undergo her last chemotherapy session in November after being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia two and a half years ago. It’s been a long journey for her, during which she lost her hair twice and developed kidney stones, her family said.
“Whenever I see Kaylah, I can always count on her to give me a smile,” Dr. Daniel Choi, pediatric hematology/oncology at Advocate Children’s Hospital, said in a news release.
“Whether she feels great or terrible from her chemotherapy, she always gives you a smile. It speaks volumes about her amazing spirit and the loved ones she is surrounded by. It always brightens my day to see that smile,” he said.
Patients who are chosen as Advocate All-Stars are presented with a trip to a Bears game, said Cristina Enea, a spokeswoman for Advocate Health.
“This is a good opportunity for her to have joy after her long (cancer) journey,” Enea said. It’s also a chance for her family, who’ve been on that journey as well, to relax and celebrate the end of Kaylah’s treatment, she said.
“Cancer is horrible, and no child should have to endure it,” her mother, Damaris Gonzalez, said. “She’s a warrior,” she said.
Gonzalez said she’s tried to be strong for her only daughter, but Kaylah saw her crying one time. “She said, ‘Mom, why are you crying? God has healed me. There’s nothing to worry about. I got this,’” her mom said.
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Kaylah is very strong, Luis Gonzalez said, and that strength has helped the family. As she nears the end of her treatment, “we are going to see a miracle,” he said. “God answers prayers.”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
