I’m sharing with you today information about a great cause that’s making a difference in the life of many — Miggy’s Gift — a non-profit organization that is working on fulfilling Stephen Miggy” Chavez’s last wish: to help pediatric cancer patients and their families. In a short timespan, this charity has taken off in a big way, but it needs much support to continue accomplishing its goal.
To learn more and for the latest progress, please check out miggysgift.com, @MiggysGift and @Miggys_Gift, and read how it all started in this excerpt from the gofundme page:
Stephen “Miggy” Chavez passed away on Tuesday, November 14th, 2017 after a four-month battle with Cancer.
Stephen’s immunotherapy treatment required that a port be surgically implanted into his right side of his chest. Stephen often complained that he was uncomfortable in his hospital gown, which had to be buttoned up and down each time the nurses needed to access his port. One day, Stephen relayed his frustration to a nurse. “These gowns are not designed for people with a port,” he said.
Then Stephen had an idea. He decided that he was going to design hospital gowns for children with cancer that would make it easier to access their ports for treatment. It would have a flap that could be opened and closed without removing the whole gown. The gowns would have superhero themes and be unisex for boys and girls alike. Stephen constantly reminded his family about this idea, and we assured him that when he recovered that would be their next project.
Stephen’s idea inspired his grandmother and aunt. They found a Spiderman t-shirt and sent it to be made into a poncho. It became his new hospital gown.
My name is Leanne Rodriguez. I am Stephen’s (Miggy’s) cousin, and my family has asked me to keep track of this campaign. We are located in Miami, Florida and the money we are raising will go to purchasing fabric and employing people to put together the gowns. The gowns will then be donated to cancer patients in our local hospitals.
In honor of Stephen’s wish to turn his idea into a benefit for others, we are starting this gofundme page to launch a new project to mass-produce these unique gowns. The ponchos will become Miggy’s Gift and be given to people of all ages as they undergo cancer treatment.
This charity is close to my heart, as Stephen was part of our family. Whether by donating, partaking in the fundraising events, and/or spreading Miggy’s legacy, you, too, can make a difference.
Some find their heroes ‘mid the battle’s strife;
The greatest heroes are in private life.
-S. Carter
The purpose of life is not to be happy — but to matter, to be productive, to be useful, to have it make some difference that you have lived at all.
-L. Rosten
