Ramsay's wish...
“I wish to visit the Isle of Wight”
12 years old,
Lymphoblastic leukaemia
Wish stories
Ramsay had always been an outdoorsy and outgoing little boy, so his parents knew there was something wrong when he suddenly seemed drained of energy.
Ramsay's story
“February 2018 is constantly engrained in my brain. He was four years old,” explained Lisa, Ramsay’s mum. “We’d taken him to see a pantomime in Edinburgh and my mum mentioned he didn’t seem quite right. We took him to the GP, who said it was viral, and to bring him back in ten days if he didn’t get better. He just wanted to sleep. A few days later, his granny phoned up and we took him straight up to St John’s, our local hospital, and it snowballed from there.”
A series of blood tests revealed the shocking diagnosis of B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, news that no child so young should ever have to comprehend.
Ramsay in hospital receiving treatment
Now 12, Ramsay is thankfully in remission and slowly getting back to his usual sporty self, though he experiences a little weakness in his legs. He is currently working on getting his strength back up through football, playing for one of the local teams.
Ramsay's wish
After being referred to Make-A-Wish by referral partner Together for Short Lives, the family had to endure a long wait due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, the time gave Ramsay the opportunity to think long and hard about what he might want for his wish. As he absolutely loves being outside in nature, a family trip to the Isle of Wight sounded like the perfect respite after years of treatment. The family had been there years ago and had fond memories of the place, so Ramsay was keen to make some more!
“It was amazing,” recalled Mum. “The sea was the first place Ramsay wanted to go after he got his central line, which he called Wiggly, removed so we spent several days at the beach in our new wetsuits on boogie boards. We also took a boat trip along the coastline, visited Osborne House, played crazy golf, played on what we call the jungle jims – 2p machines – and went to an old-fashioned tearoom. Ramsay loved the pancakes and Nutella and was gutted that it wasn’t open the day we were leaving but luckily, we found somewhere else!”
Ramsay’s favourite moments of the trip were the days the family spent on the beach, even when it was freezing cold! For his mum, it was simply the irreplaceable feeling of seeing him playing like a carefree child.
“There were no hospitals – it was almost like that happened in a past life. It was nice to see him being himself and enjoying things, laughing, giggling and enjoying life.”
The trip was especially special, as along with Ramsay’s parents and sisters, they were joined by his grandparents and auntie and uncle as well, giving the whole family a wonderful opportunity to celebrate Ramsay’s remission together.
Ramsay and his sisters in the Sea
"Thank you. It was absolutely amazing and gave us that sense of closure. You don’t have control over your life when your child goes through treatment and it was that light at the end of the tunnel – making memories, laughing and having fun. We didn’t get to do that before as we were always worrying about an infection or a temperature or having to go into hospital. We were able to be there through the generosity of other people, and we are grateful it could become a reality,"
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