In the short time Weylon has been alive, Cheyenne Parker says her son’s fun has been limited after he experienced a brain injury at birth.
“He had a lack of blood flow and oxygen to his brain in the breathing process,” Cheyenne said.
Because of this, four-year-old Weylon’s childhood has looked a lot different than most kids his age.
“Our whole life has revolved around trips to the hospital, appointments, therapy is endless. I don't even know how many that we've been to in his short life so far,” said Cheyenne.
Still, she and Weylon's dad Isaak Parker told News 5 that their son is a trooper, and they’ll do whatever it takes to make him happy.
“We try to do our best to really just give him the best experience in life as we can,” said Isaak.
The family tells News 5 they made this happen earlier this month for Weylon’s fourth birthday.
“It was so special just to see Weylon just have so much fun,” said Cheyenne.
Thanks to the help of Make-A-Wish Foundation for Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, the Parkers received a trip of a lifetime to New Orleans just for Weylon to listen to jazz music.
“Without them, we would have never had those memories to look back on and just the experiences that we had, seeing Weylon so happy for the whole time, and you know, all that came along with that trip. It’s just a highlight of our lives,” said Isaak.
Weylon’s parents admit it might be odd to some that a four-year-old enjoys jazz music.
But he says it brings his son comfort during those difficult moments.
“It's like we just felt God's presence there, just like we got to see the great parts of humanity in general,” said Isaak.
As the family counts their blessings, they say they can’t help but thank people like Kayla Webb at the Make-A-Wish Foundation for granting their son’s wish.
“To be able to grant his wish to go to New Orleans and listen to jazz music is just such a fun wish, and it's something that was so impactful and life-changing for the family,” said Kayla, who is the Market Director of Advancement for Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
So far, Make-A-Wish has already granted 40 wishes this year in Northeast Ohio, she said.
Kayla said their goal is to grant more than 1,000, but she says more support is needed due to the growing number of kids.
“It costs about $10,000 to grant a wish, and so the more support that we have to be able to grant wishes, the more wishes that we can grant,” Kayla said.
In return, you’ll give families like the Parkers memories to last a lifetime.
If you're interested in donating and entering a contest for a chance to win a house, click here.
