MONTREAL - Simone Cavanaugh doesn’t call herself an angel but one family in Nicaragua might mistake her for just that as she has gone to great lengths to help their four-year-old boy with cerebral palsy.
Cavanaugh, who was forced into a wheelchair for seven years as a child due to rheumatoid arthritis, immediately decided upon meeting young Milton to help out in any way she could.
She held a zumba party that aimed to raise $7,000 to help the young boy cope with his condition but ended up raising $10,000 instead.
“He was spending his time in his mother's arms who was carrying him around everywhere or lying down in bed,” said Cavanaugh.
The cash allowed her to buy Milton a wheelchair, toys, and a walker and made she also made sure that he was provided help learning how to operate them.
Cavanaugh also recruited others to help, include Marie-Kim McFeteridge, an occupational therapist who has witnessed Milton’s advances.
“To see the change that we brought was very impressive, he can use his hands, he can play, he can look at other kids,” she said.
McFeteridge is also impressed by Cavanaugh’s selfless dedication.
“I was like, ‘Oh my God, how did she do all this?’ And she's only 19.”
Cavanaugh said that one can be surprised at how one’s passion for giving can elicit the same spirit in others.
“You share your passion with others and everyone is there to support you. That was a definitely a lesson too, how much other people really do care,” she said.
