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

October 31, 2016

Monday, October 31, 2016

Monday, October 31, 2016

Tonight's picture was taken on Halloween 2008. The last Halloween we had with Mattie. Mattie was six years old and was in his second month of cancer treatment, as well as had his first limb salvaging surgery of his arm. Mattie was very hesitant about getting into a costume. Mostly because he knew whatever he wore would clearly show he had cancer. 

At Georgetown University Hospital, Halloween is a big deal. The Hope for Henry Foundation provides a huge party and also provides costumes for the children. Mattie's art therapists knew that picking out a costume in front of a ton of other children in the clinic would be a disaster for Mattie. So instead, they invited Mattie and I to look at costumes a day before the other children. This was a blessing because Mattie typically shut down with noise and chaos and he was also very fearful that others would bump into his arm that had the surgery. When we came in to look at the costumes alone, Mattie went through them at his own pace. It was Mattie who spotted the mummy costume and selected it. In all reality it was the perfect costume for him because it covered his bald head and due of the nature of the costume, you weren't thrown off by the fact that you couldn't see Mattie's right arm. You couldn't see it because it was under the costume, bandaged! 

The photo was taken in the Hospital elevator, while Mattie was going floor to floor trick or treating. Though Mattie was smiling in this photo, the event and day were very hard for him. He was highly agitated and angry. 


Quote of the day: If you seek creative ideas go walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes for a walk. Raymond I. Myers



Well when the State Department says something is OVER, I clearly know that means absolutely NOTHING! The unit that we live in has two ways to get outside. You have seen my deck side, since I have been posting about that for a week. The State Department construction has been so intrusive on the deck side..... with dust, debris, and terrible noise. Which started in August of 2015!!!

But this is what my other side looks like. I am the balcony with the flowers. Next to me are scaffolding, ropes, and a lot more noise. I haven't mentioned this side because my deck side was so horrendous. But this morning, there was a jack hammer going on near this scaffolding and my whole interior was shaking. In the Spring I had the living room windows washed. They looked fantastic, until the State Department started sand blasting and power washing their side. Needless to say, all that dust and water landed right back on my windows. I am truly livid with their level of disregard and today I wrote another formal complaint to our complex's management. I am getting tired of living with noise, dust, debris, workmen around, and attitude. 

Sunny and I went for several walks today. While we were out and about, I saw many preschoolers dressed in costume and with their parents. One school had a Halloween parade down by the waterfront. Frankly it was a very bittersweet sight. I can't help but look at these children and parents and think..... that was once me, but cancer took that away. As awful as it sounds I always wonder which of these families will be like me and worse I think over and over again.... why did this happen to us? Of course there are no answers to this question. 

In a way this is the last day of peace for me, because as of tomorrow the Foundation's Post Halloween Candy Drive will begin. Candy will get dropped off at different locations (this is an example of bin on the door step of a friend's house) and I will also be running around town picking up and carting candy. 

I am certainly happy to run the drive as it helps to stock our snack cart at Georgetown University Hospital. But the candy drive is VERY labor intensive and requires a lot of manpower and volunteers. 


Bins like these will be dropped at different locations in the Virginia area. I have very dedicated volunteers who manage the distribution of bins, the picking up of candy and sorting it. However, I do take on all of this for DC and Maryland and I can assure you candy is heavy and in bulk smells horrific. Last year, I collected about 2,500 pounds of candy and sorted it myself in DC. My Virginia team picked up and sorted 5,000 pounds of candy last year and then we transported it to Mattie's school. At the end of November 2015, I went in a large school truck and delivered the candy to three locations. The 2,500 pounds of candy that was in my home in DC, I transported to various hospitals and organizations on my own. Literally ALL of November I am inundated with candy! By the first week of December all the candy is gone and delivered which is a great feeling. 

1 comment:

Margy Jost said...

Vicki,
I spent time looking at the photo, you put of Mattie on your blog. One can tell it is Mattie during a hard time, despite his beautiful smile, you look into his eyes and know! Yet kids in treatment strive best they can to be a kid.
I wish I had answers to the why of Childhood Cancer, all the suffering and loss. Not that the answer would change the devastation of this diagnosis on such innocent children.

It seems you deserve an enormous apology from the department who is creating such havoc at your home. The STATE DEPARTMENT!!!

Thank you Vicki & Mattie Miracle for taking on the role of candy distribution. I know it must be an all encompassing job which requires lots of time. I can however see the smiles of the hospitalized children as they. Check out all their choices!!! It is a travesty that INOVA FAIRFAX did not take the time to investigate the MATTIE MIRACLE CART. An even bigger disappointment in the world of Psychosocial Support that they did not recognize immediately just how much this would mean to Children & their families hospitalized for Cancer treatment.