Get the Top, Local stories delivered to your inbox! Click here to join the daily Vernon Matters newsletter.
$10,000 goal

Children’s Wish Foundation hopes to help Vernon Boy

Aug 14, 2019 | 12:31 PM

The Children’s Wish Foundation along with National Bank are hoping to make a Vernon boy’s wish come true.

Spencer Sawatzky is 14 years old and was diagnosed with llecolonic Crohn’s Disease in 2016 and Ulcerative Colitis in 2017.

The young teen who enjoys playing golf and spending time with his family cried in disbelief as he learned he was chosen to receive a wish, according to the Children’s Wish Foundation.

The children’s charity said Sawatzky was rushed to hospital and endured an emergency surgery when he was first diagnosed and now needs to be frequently monitored for his health.

Sawatzky received seven surgeries in the last three-and-a-half years including a full colectomy at 10 years’ old.

“He has chronic fatigue, anxiety, and about every three to six weeks, suffers with very unsettled bowels and stomach pain,” a news release sent by the Children’s Wish Foundation said.

His diagnosis has meant his family has had to travel to and from B.C. Children’s Hospital every four weeks for treatment, requiring his parents to miss miss work and for him to miss a day of school.

Sawatzky doesn’t know what his wish will be just yet, but he is hoping to raise $10,000 together with the National Bank for the Timber Mart Heroes challenge event in Vancouver.

View Comments