FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WTVF) — Running just as fast as her pink Nikes can carry her on the soccer field, 10-year-old Caroline Lantz has boundless energy.
"I feel like if you're not active, you're gonna be sitting home all day being bored," Caroline smiled.
Always watching is mom Margaret.
"I just love how free she looks and how happy she looks," Margaret said. "I'm so grateful every time I see her get on that grass."
She's grateful because there was a long time Caroline couldn't be out running on this field. Caroline was in preschool when she first felt the pain in her back.
"We went to Vanderbilt, and they did a lot of tests, and we finally figured out I had stage 4 neuroblastoma," Caroline said.
What followed was rounds of chemotherapy, more than 4,000 pills, more than 60 blood transfusions, and a relapse last year.
"She spent over 160 nights over this last relapse at Vanderbilt," Margaret said. "She's beaten this cancer monster twice. Now, she's on a high-dose clinical trial again. There's only one thing that would be worse, and that's her not being here. I'm just so grateful we get to fight."
"Coach always says, when in doubt, be aggressive," Caroline smiled.
"I do think that mindset is so important, and it followed her through her treatment; just be aggressive and attack," Margaret added.
The story of this tough kid reached someone else's mom.
"Just a bright light," Blandina Vergara-Cruz said of her son, Raymond. "He's always been like that, always thinking of others before himself."
Raymond was diagnosed with Ewing-like sarcoma when he was 16. The non-profit Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee reached out.
"They give wishes to those who are re-diagnosed or are going into palliative care," Blandina said.
The group gifted Raymond and his family a trip to a cabin in the Smoky Mountains.
"He wanted to be on the balcony where he could sit and look at all the trees and the mountains," Blandina remembered. "I remember how important it was for my family to see the sunrise or the sunset together cause, y'know, we would never have that moment again. He said, 'mom, we're all going to pass one day. I just will pass sooner than others.'"
Raymond died four years ago. That trip is an important memory for Blandina.
"It was beautiful, my family not having to think about anything but each other," she said. "We were so grateful that Dreams and Wishes felt it was important to grant Raymond that wish."
Knowing Blandina runs a children's party business and has volunteer connections with Raymond's Ray of Light Foundation, Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee asked Blandina if she could help with something for Caroline. So, what do you do for a kid with boundless energy? Well, perhaps you throw a carnival.
"My mind was blown," Caroline said, remembering walking into a room at Embassy Suites Cool Springs. "I couldn't believe my eyes."
The room was filled with people dressed as carnival performers, games, and balloons.
"It was truly stunning," Margaret added. "It took our breath away. I was speechless for the whole day. I have chills just thinking about it."
Blandina said an event this grand for Caroline would make Raymond proud.
"Her son had cancer, so we just have that thing in common," Caroline said.
"I knew Caroline needed the best party she could imagine, and I hope that's what she got," Blandina said. "Seeing her come over and give me a hug and say 'I'm having the best time, thank you,' how can that not make you feel so good? It was great. Yeah."
"I just want to tell them thank you so much for making my dreams come true," Caroline said.
Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee tells us donations are down since the start of the pandemic. They say they're in dire need of donations. For more on Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee, visit here.
For more on the Ray of Light Foundation, visit here.
