Mattie Miracle Walk 2023 was a $131,249 success!

Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation Promotional Video

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to us that you take the time to write to us and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful to us and help support us through very challenging times. To you we are forever grateful. As my readers know, I promised to write the blog for a year after Mattie's death, which would mean that I could technically stop writing on September 9, 2010. However, at the moment, I feel like our journey with grief still needs to be processed and fortunately I have a willing support network still committed to reading. Therefore, the blog continues on. If I should find the need to stop writing, I assure you I will give you advanced notice. In the mean time, thank you for reading, thank you for having the courage to share this journey with us, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


As Mattie would say, Ooga Booga (meaning, I LOVE YOU)! Vicki and Peter



The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation celebrates its 7th anniversary!

The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation was created in the honor of Mattie.

We are a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. We are dedicated to increasing childhood cancer awareness, education, advocacy, research and psychosocial support services to children, their families and medical personnel. Children and their families will be supported throughout the cancer treatment journey, to ensure access to quality psychosocial and mental health care, and to enable children to cope with cancer so they can lead happy and productive lives. Please visit the website at: www.mattiemiracle.com and take some time to explore the site.

We have only gotten this far because of people like yourself, who have supported us through thick and thin. So thank you for your continued support and caring, and remember:

.... Let's Make the Miracle Happen and Stomp Out Childhood Cancer!

A Remembrance Video of Mattie

February 2, 2019

Saturday, February 2, 2019

Saturday, February 2, 2019

Tonight's picture was taken in February of 2003. Mattie was 10 months old and getting around our home in his infamous "tot wheels." Mattie could zoom around corners and had a natural understanding for speed and spatial relations. I snapped this photo because look at where those little hands were! In my silver ware drawer!!! The ultimate multi-tasker. 



Quote of the day: When you can do a common thing in an uncommon way; you will command the attention of the world. ~ George Washington Carver


I met with my friend in cancer tonight. My friend, Ilona, runs a childhood cancer non-profit and at the heart of it all is an artist. Over the December holidays, Ilona started to create ornaments. When she showed me some samples, an idea came to me! Why not create Mattie Miracle ornaments in honor of our tenth anniversary this year. 

Ilona bestowed the ornaments on me and what my reader may not appreciate is the complexity of integrating our logo into the ornament. Ilona worked on this process for weeks until she got it just right. I think she did a beautiful job and what I like about these ornaments are two things.... they are handmade and supporting the work of the Chris Lantos Foundation (since we made a personal donation to the Foundation). So to me these are not just ornaments, but a meaningful thank you gift.  

My friend and I were talking tonight about our sons' bedrooms. When is the "right" time to clean out your child's room after he/she dies? I am not sure there is a good answer, as I am sure the answer varies for each of us. I have heard that some bereaved parents never changed a thing in their child's room, even after twenty years. I have also heard some parents addressing the room right away, and anything in between. It is a personal decision and one that I am not sure the outside world looking in would understand. 


In 2009, The Washington Post came to interview us. In the process they snapped this photo as I was showing them the state of Mattie's room. The room was no longer usable, as it turned into a warehouse, filled with all the gifts and items Mattie received daily. This is a component of Mattie's cancer journey that doesn't always get addressed. But the amount of items coming in daily for 14 months were overwhelming. I never complained as these items distracted Mattie and truly helped us get through long days in the hospital. Yet after Mattie died, every one of these items stared at me daily. It was painful and I felt like we were living in an episode of hoarders. However, it took me over five years to face this hoard head on. I did it alone, no one was around to help me by this point. The reason I did it? Well it wasn't because I cared about the stuff piling up around me, it wasn't that I needed the space, but here's the reason...... I did not feel this room represented Mattie's life well. The room was chaotic and showed the havoc of our lives. I no longer could easily see Mattie's creations or the beautiful things he created. It was this, that inspired me to clean out. I wanted the room to better reflect the beauty of Mattie. 

In 2013, I had created piles everywhere. Things that were going to be donated..... Goodwill, to other hospitals, etc. 









Though Mattie's room looks a little different now from this photo, you get the gist. The room went from total chaos to this beautiful Mattie Miracle color and completely organized. All Mattie Miracle admin work occurs now from Mattie's bedroom. 

2 comments:

Sabrina said...

Hello Brown Family,

I came across your blog webpage in search of a blog that involves a child who has/had cancer. Although these blog posts were not written by Mattie himself, I must say that your blogs truly are brave and inspirational, and I admire you because like Mattie, you are a warrior. I specifically decided to comment on this post because I believe that coming face to face with cleaning up a deceased loved one's room is an emotional task. I remember when my mother and I had to clean up all of my father's belongings when he passed away. A major part of me did not want to be a part of this because that would mean that I would truly have to face the reality that he was gone. Having his belongings in the house still made me hold onto the idea that he was going to walk through the front door any second. However, eventually every one has to face the music.

I found it very admirable that you chose to fix his room in a way that resembled his memory to you rather than to pack everything up. I admire this blog webpage because just like his room, you are keeping Mattie's memory alive. God bless you all.

Lisa said...

May God bless your family. The love is so evident.

We are in the process of adopting a child in Mobile AL and pray for the health of all babies and mothers.