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

September 11, 2017

Monday, September 11, 2017

Monday, September 11, 2017

Tonight's picture was taken in September of 2008. Mattie was in treatment for about a month at that point. The computer you see in front of Mattie was given to him by his technology teacher at school. Mattie and Mary had a special connection, so much so that Mary visited Mattie every week in the hospital to teach him a few lessons on the computer. However, Mary quickly deduced that Mattie really did not have the energy or ability to focus on school work. So instead in those moments, she played with Mattie. I can recall that one day Mattie was building a huge apartment building in his room out of a large packing box. This was NO ordinary box, as Mattie was designing an elevator with a pulley system. Mary jumped into whatever activity Mattie was involved in, which I really appreciated. While Mary interacted with Mattie for an hour, I would leave the room and sit in the hallway. It was an hour to myself to regroup. I will always remember Mary's kindness. In fact, Mattie recorded a message to me on this computer, and about two years ago, Mary downloaded it and sent it to me. I have it, but I have yet to listen to it. Videos that involve voice are actually harder to view than photos. 


Quote of the day: I hope today as we commemorate the 16th anniversary of 9/11, everyone will stop for a moment and remember all the people who gave their lives that day. ~ Magaly Lemagne (lost her brother, a NJ Police Officer on 9/11)



Tim sent us this photo today! This is orange tie number 4, in Orange Tie week. Tim wears a different orange tie to work for a week in memory of Mattie. Specifically timed with the anniversary of Mattie's death. Tim adds to the tie collection every year, and I have to say that I look forward to receiving this photos. It is a reminder to me that my words are important, because Tim never met Mattie, yet through the blog he feels like he has gotten to know him.  
Unlike other days in the year, HUGE American flags come out in recognition of 9/11. I am actually happy to see these visual reminders because frankly without them, I would never know it was 9/11 in our region. Everyone I saw today, made NO MENTION to this day and how it changed every aspect of our Country moving forward. If it weren't for the Smithsonian Channel or History Channel, I would literally see VERY little coverage of this 16th anniversary. I find this upsetting and I did not lose a loved one in 9/11. Yet I remember the day vividly, being pregnant with Mattie and confused about what was happening and not sure how Peter was going to get home from his worksite in Virginia. I think these visuals of people jumping out of the World Trade Center will always remain with me and frankly this was the turning point where I realized we are never truly safe.

Naturally high school students (and younger) today, for the most part weren't even born when 9/11 happened and have no personal understanding to how our Country was impacted and the chaos that unfolded from that day. Cities shut down. Not for just a day, but days and weeks. Airplanes all over the Country were grounded. Stores and banks closed, and DC looked like a ghost town. People were afraid to go back onto planes for quite some time after that, as we never had an attack like this in our history, in which terrorists used our own planes against us to cause death and harm to thousands of people. 

Another sight outside the car window today. 
Mind you this is a photo of Roslyn, VA, who yearly drape flags from the roofs of buildings. I am not seeing flags unfurled like this in DC. 
Sunny and I went on a walk today. We were standing in DC, and looking at Roslyn, VA. You will see several buildings with flags on top of them, draped down. 











To all my animal lover friends, check out this 9/11 hero. This is a video of Bretagne (pronounced Brittany), the LAST 9/11 search and rescue dog walking into the vet's office for the last time with a hero's salute. She would have turned 17 in August.
May we never forget this day..... the 3,000 fellow Americans who lost their lives, the rescue workers who sacrificed themselves to save others and remain affected both physically and mentally, and for all the families and friends left behind and forever changed.

Last Search & Rescue Dog from 9/11 put to sleep (Bretagne)

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