Will's Story

New England family and friends show appreciation and help others

Adopted from China as a baby in 1998 through Wide Horizons For Children, Will McCarthy was immediately welcomed and loved by his new family; his mom Ginny, his aunt Cathleen, his cousin, Mei-Lin, who is also adopted from China, and his grandmother. In 2003, Will was diagnosed with Moya Moya disease which results in progressive narrowing of the brain blood vessels over time. There is no known cause for the disease but there is a treatment.

Will had three rounds of surgery at Children's Hospital Boston in 2003 and 2004. R. Michael Scott, MD, Director of Clinical Pediatric Neurosurgery at Children's Hospital, performed the surgery that he designed after the disease was first discovered in the early 1970's. Due to the early diagnosis by Dr. Scott and the surgeries at Children's, along with Will's resilience, his prognosis is very good.

"We are so lucky to have such a facility close-by - and are blessed to have Dr. Scott in our lives," said Ginny McCarthy, Will's mom.

Thankful to have such a great facility close by and wanting to support the hospital, the McCarthy family formed a team called "Will's Walkers" to participate in the very first Miles for Miracles Walk in 2003 to benefit Children's Hospital. The first walk took place just six weeks after Will's first surgery.

The Will's Walkers team has walked every year since 2003, raising over $20,000 for the hospital so far. The funds raised by the walk support the hospital's mission to provide highly specialized care to more children and do more groundbreaking research that changes children's lives.

The 2006 Walk took place on Sunday, June 11 and the Hospital's goal was to raise $825,000. Will's Walkers raised $7,400 before the walk and expects to have raised over $9,000 when all is said and done - which is a new record for the team. The 2006 team was comprised of four adoptive families, three of whom adopted through Wide Horizon For Children's China & Korea programs.

Resources

2006 Wills Walkers Team Info

Children's Hospital - Miles For Miracles Program

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