Gladbeck.
Max from Gladbeck is terminally ill, suffering from incurable leukemia. Now his heart’s desire, a trip to Disneyland, has come true.
“The Princess Pavilion!” This answer comes like a shot when you ask Max what he liked most about Disneyland in Paris. The terminally ill boy from Gladbeck was in the amusement park in the French capital for three days. The seven-year-old’s heart’s desire came true.
Max suffers from leukemia, the cancer is so aggressive that neither chemotherapy nor stem cell therapy can help. The trip to Disneyland was also the fulfillment of a last wish. The sympathy for Max Destiny is huge, a fundraising campaign brings together the necessary money for this beautiful trip within a very short time.
Paramedics could have brought Max back to Gladbeck at any time
Because actually, “it was mega”, says mother Anna Beutler. It was exactly how you imagine Disneyland to be. There was a lot to see and marvel at. And that’s what Max did and took in numerous impressions. “We were out and about in the park all day,” reports the mother. Everything went perfectly – also thanks to the support of the ASB dream car.
He drove Max to Paris, paramedics were there, as a sort of backup, and they could have taken Max home immediately in the event of complications. Luckily that wasn’t necessary. Until the day of her departure, she tried to keep Max in the dark, after all, the insidious illness could have thwarted the plan at any time. When it is clear on the day of departure that they are going to Disneyland, Max and his siblings are overjoyed.
Photos, autographs and mountains of cuddly toys as souvenirs
And with Anna Beutler, the relief is great. In this way she can at least fulfill a promise she made to Max. “With every injection, with every pill I gave him, I told him that that was ten euros for Disneyland again.”
Max explores the park in a wheelchair, so he can concentrate entirely on his darlings. He is relieved, laughs, is happy when he meets Aurora from the Disney classic Sleeping Beauty in the princess pavilion. Encounters with Belle from “Beauty and the Beast” and Cinderella are also among the memories that the family brings to Gladbeck – in addition to photos, autographs and mountains of cuddly toys. The only small drop of bitterness – if one can speak of it at all. Max’s absolute favourite, the evil sea witch Ursula from Arielle, hasn’t shown up.
Beautiful and painful situations are closely related
There were lots of pictures of Max laughing and beaming – a relief for Anna Beutler and in the meantime also the opportunity to switch off, the attempt to suppress worries a little. In a situation like this, it’s almost impossible to do that. And so Anna Beutler reports on both the most beautiful and the most painful point of the journey. “At the parade in the park with thousands of people, Goofy came to Max and shook his hand, but at that moment I knew exactly why we were there.”
Max is still fine, he laughs and plays, reports Anna Beutler. But at the same time the values shot up, “getting worse and worse”. The body also shows signs of the disease. Anna Beutler is all the more grateful that Max’s heart’s desire came true, that he was allowed to see Disneyland together with his brothers.
Because no one can predict what will happen next. The family now wants to make Max’s time as nice as possible, because everyone knows that there will come a day when Max will no longer be there, and there will be no happy ending á la Disney.
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