Young cancer survivor receives special birthday gift
A brave little girl who battled cancer received an extra-special gift for her third birthday, thanks to a creative stranger from Idaho.
Jessica Sebastian, owner of Sebastian Design, was recently contacted by Danielle Munger, whose toddler daughter, Brynn, lost an eye to cancer. The mother asked Sebastian if she would create a bunny doll with one eye.
"The girl had started to notice that she was different, and her sweet mama read articles about how finding a doll who matches how a child looks can be helpful and therapeutic," Sebastian said on Facebook. "She wanted her daughter to have a doll that looks like her and only has her right eye."
Munger said they first noticed Brynn's eyelid was drooping a couple weeks after her first birthday. Doctors later discovered a tumor behind her left eye.
"Her cancer is rare and the diagnosis took a while to come," Munger told FOX 5's Katie Muse. "Finally, we learned that her cancer is called Undifferentiated Sarcoma."
Brynn's oncologist recommended having her left eye removed, as well as everything else within her left orbit, because the tumor had touched everything. Brynn underwent several surgeries and then had six weeks of daily radiation to eradicate the cancer cells.
"The day before Thanksgiving, he [Brynn's doctor] performed another surgery to graft skin over her orbit to make what is called a safe wound," Munger said.
Brynn has now been in remission for more than a year, and celebrated another milestone Tuesday: her third birthday.
For Brynn's birthday, her mother wanted to give her a gift that's as special as she is, so she reached out to Sebastian about creating a doll with one eye. Sebastian designed an adorable bunny dressed in a gold skirt and shiny gold bow.
"The outpouring of love in all its forms was so amazing, so appreciated, and so very needed," Munger said. "And now through this journey we have added Jessica to the list of amazing, caring, generous people blessing our lives."
"To date, I don't think I've ever been asked to create something so tender and meaningful," Sebastian said.
Sebastian shared several photos on Facebook of the bunny as well as in image of Brynn holding her new doll.
"My favorite part of this photo is how she is wearing her Wonder Woman nightgown," Sebastian said. "It perfectly represents the strength and courage of this little superhero."
Sebastian told FOX 5 the experience was both amazing and humbling.