Atenea Evia Ancona, president of Sueños de Ángel AC, together with volunteers, has the mission of making the dreams of children with cancer come true.
My mission is to support very low-income children at the O’Horán Hospital. At Sueños de Ángel we have been supporting for 15 years. The founder of the organization is Susana Troyo Rodríguez, she recalled.
It all started because more than 20 years ago we went as independent volunteers to the hospital to provide support to families, be with children with cancer, and play with them while they received their chemo, explained the interviewee.
There we realized that one of the children’s birthday was coming and the parents did not have money to buy a cake, they could not celebrate it and we know that the children’s greatest hope is for us to celebrate their birthday.
Seeing that a child was going through all the difficulties in the world, was struggling, and did not have such a great desire to celebrate, the idea of making Sueños de Ángel arose.
Yucatán, in the “top 3” of the states with the most cases of HIV AIDS during 2022.
The help was to give emotional attention to the children and fulfill their dreams.
In a disease like cancer, the emotional part is very important, he said. Fulfilling a dream, an illusion will make your treatment go better.
—Attitude, state of mind, happiness, having hope, having hope, and getting out of the environment of illness a little have to do with it.
—Something very important is to not only cover sick children but the entire family because we believe that the entire family in some way is suffering from this condition.
The fact that they can be away from that environment by going to the movies or a beach, even walking in a square with their little brothers, is good, it is like a recharge of energy for him and his family.
—In everything we do we include the little brothers and the whole family, we take good care of that.
Atenea Evia stated that some people have told her that her apostolate is beautiful, “but for me, it is not an apostolate, it is a lifestyle.”
Life gave me the opportunity, I am very lucky for a person who invited me to this work, she said. I am a teacher, I am a Montessori guide and the mother of one of my girls who started going to the O’Horán hospital 23 years ago invited me to go. She told me ‘Athena, come with me, I’m going to see the children with cancer.’ The truth is, my first answer was no because being in a hospital is extremely difficult.
—I love and adore children, but I said that I couldn’t handle seeing a sick child, who is receiving his chemo or who is being injected.
Fortunately, he convinced me and I said ‘Well, I’m going to try it; If I can, then that’s great and if not, he stopped going and that’s it. It was to my surprise that I began to know these children, the strength they have, and the way they are fighting; Even though they are connected to receiving chemo, if at that moment they do not have pain they are happy, they play, they talk, it is truly amazing,” he noted.
—They are true teachers of life and from day one I loved it and now I am dedicated to this, this is my life, I don’t have children and these children are like my children.
Atenea Evia reiterated that more than 20 years ago she went to the hospital as an independent volunteer.
There I met the teacher, Susana Troyo Rodríguez, we volunteers joined together and she decided to do Sueños de Ángel 15 years ago.
Reward
We are 100% altruistic, we do it from the heart, here no one receives a salary and our greatest satisfaction is seeing these children smile, fulfill their dreams, have fun with them, and accompany them throughout their processes, which sometimes last three years or a little more. Also with the children who unfortunately do not make it, being with them until the end, fulfilling their dreams, and giving them joy and all our love to both them and their families.
Many people tell you not to get involved, but there is no way not to get involved because they are children with whom you are living, with whom you are growing, you are seeing their triumphs, their struggles, and how they move forward little by little and you are with them. accompanying them throughout this process.
Children are loving. It is truly a great honor for me to be with them, they make me a better human being, and value, and enjoy how they teach us, said Atenea Evia.
Then he explained that not only are they sick children, but they have many economic needs and despite this they are there fighting and giving their best to get ahead.
As he recalled, they have asked them for wishes that were as simple as they were, but great for them, such as seeing the sea, a horse, going to a shopping plaza or riding an escalator, something that is everyday for many, but that they have never seen and find it difficult. extraordinary.
There are children who ask to meet artists and fortunately we have achieved it; There are the girls and even the mother who don’t know cinema and it takes you away. They say “how big this television is”.
Those things feel very cool. There is also the case of a girl who wants a wig because her hair fell out due to chemo, so we take her to her place so she can choose the one she wants.
Another girl wanted to fly in a small plane and doing so was amazing.
Children who go to the Riviera Maya to meet the dolphins; The girl who is turning 15 and whose parents cannot pay for it is given incredible parties; children who want to make their first communions too; their birthdays, among others.
Throughout all these years there have been some losses of life because that’s how it is, it has even happened to me with a child that I loved very much, one Wednesday he died, it was very sad, but I had to celebrate his birthday that same day a girl in the afternoon and continue.
It hurts when one leaves, of course it hurts, it’s a process, he shared. In the organization they also see support for funeral expenses.
—I happened to be at a party at night, they tell me and at that moment I have to help the parents to pay for the funeral expenses because they don’t have the resources to cover them.
The president of Sueños de Ángel indicated that she will continue collaborating to make the dreams of children with cancer come true as long as life allows.
TYT Newsroom
