Happy 2nd birthday Prince!
In Philadelphia, Prince celebrated his second birthday and is Casey Cares' 842nd birthday this year!
Casey Cares knows that for a critically ill child, each birthday is a special milestone celebrating life. For the children in our programs, it not only marks another year, but it also demonstrates a great achievement. Casey Cares staff and volunteers work hard to send out each of our kids a special birthday package through our Birthday Blast program - we send over 1,000 a year! This simple act of kindness delivers joy and hope to our kids who are undergoing treatment.
A Difficult Journey
The journey to this momentous celebration has not been easy for Prince. Prince has congenital vocal cord paralysis and is dependent on a ventilator. Also called congenital laryngeal palsy, he has paralysis of the vocal cords because of dysfunction of the motor nerve supply to the larynx.
Prince's treatment at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is not only taxing on him but also his parents and siblings. His mother Rahdia stated, “Prince’s diagnosis has affected our family in a huge way mentally, physically, and definitely emotionally. My oldest two children too suffered emotionally due to Prince being sick in the hospital.”
“The blessing in disguise is that we as a family already dealt with my second son having the same diagnosis as Prince,” said Rahdia. “With Prince being the baby, we knew as parents how to clinically take care of Prince due to the fact of our second son had the same diagnosis. Unfortunately, you could never be prepared emotionally so it took a lot out of my family.”
Casey Cares
With Prince joining Casey Cares in 2021, Rahdia explains, “We are so thankful for Casey Cares to donate trips and other family fun things just to make us as a family have great and wonderful memories. Prince was in the hospital from birth to 9 months so getting him home finally and having Casey Cares Foundation helping us build lovely memories with him and just watching him and his siblings have a great time is a warm, beautiful feeling.”
She said, “So, we as a family and myself as a mother are grateful and thankful for Casey Cares Foundation.”
A Trip to Sesame Place
The family has attended Philadelphia Union games, enjoyed the performers at Disney on Ice, cozied up for Movie and Pizza Night packages, and saw the dinos at Jurassic Quest - all thanks to Casey Cares' donors and sponsors!
Recently, Prince and his family had a chance to spend time together and visited Sesame Place.
His mother Rahdia said, “Our favorite activity we have done as a family thanks to Casey Cares was Sesame Place because it’s kid friendly - meaning kid friendly rides and games. It was so nostalgic for us parents. Also, Prince love Elmo too!”
The love that the family has for their son is boundless. Rahdia concludes, “If I can describe Prince in one word, it would be “warrior.” I say that because what he has been through and still going through; he’s just so brave. A true fighter, his God warrior, Prince is beautiful inside and out just a joy to know and be around. He’s our Prince! We love you Prince!!”
You can support critically ill children like Prince this holiday season right here!