Wish stories

‘Our happy, bubbly baby was tired and sad all the time’, said Adil’s Mum, Mariam Ashfari-Nazr, recalling the awful first months after her 3-year-old son was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. ‘Our whole had world changed overnight. He just wanted to be like other children.’

Adil spent over three years in and out of hospital, undergoing multiple rounds of chemotherapy. Although declared ‘cancer-free’ in 2021, COVID restrictions meant Adil could not celebrate with his friends and family. After years of isolation and pain, all Adil wanted was to be a ‘normal kid again’ and celebrate the end of treatment with loved ones.

Now aged eight, Adil’s wish has finally come true! Make-A-Wish UK worked to make the experience as magical as possible for Adil, with a red carpet to welcome him in, light-up letters spelling out ‘ADIL’, and catering provided by his favourite place - KFC.

‘When I got sick I was three years old,’ said Adil himself, in an emotional speech to 200 people, which kicked off the celebrations. ‘I was too young to understand. But now I do. Being cancer free makes me happy - thank you everyone!’

Kerry Phillips, Adil’s Wishgranter at Make-A-Wish UK, said ‘To be able to make Adil’s wish come true, after everything he’s been through, is an incredible feeling. At Make-A-Wish UK we're dependent on donations to make wishes come true for children like Adil - who's just one of 63,000 children in the UK living with critical illness. We’re very grateful to everyone who supports us to make these wishes come true, and we hope that today has created memories for Adil and his family to treasure forever.’

After ringing the bell, Adil partied with friends and family until 10pm, enjoying a DJ-led disco, face-painting, candyfloss, popcorn, and a bouncy castle to be enjoyed by 130 children.

You can watch a video of the day below...