COARSEGOLD – Logan Sesto had a profound yet seemingly simple wish: a day of play at the beach. Not much is uncomplicated, though, when you’re someone like Logan. Now 5, the cherub-faced charmer lives with residual health effects of Transverse Myelitis (TM), an autoimmune disease he acquired as a baby. While being as active as possible, Logan is a paraplegic, so going to the beach takes more than a sand bucket and some sunscreen.
For school at Coarsegold Elementary, Logan uses a walker, and a wheelchair for distance, explains mom Lisa. To comfortably get to the beach, he needed some very special equipment.
Simply put, Logan was a “meth baby,” according to his Make-A-Wish fundraising page, written by Lisa.
“My life started out a little rocky,” it says with understatement. Logan was “born to parents that were incapable of taking care of me, and having to go through withdrawals.”
He was placed in foster care shortly ofter birth, then briefly returned to his birth mother. Once he developed TM, resulting in a non-traumatic spinal cord injury, Logan and brother Gabriel went back into foster care, in different homes. At the age of seven months, Logan and Gabriel, about a year older, were adopted into their forever-home by Lisa and her husband, Michael.
Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by inflammation across both sides of one level, or segment, of the spinal cord. The term myelitis refers to inflammation of the spinal cord; transverse simply describes the position of the inflammation, that is, across the width of the spinal cord. Attacks of inflammation can damage or destroy myelin, the fatty insulating substance that covers nerve cell fibers. This damage causes nervous system scars that interrupt communications between the nerves in the spinal cord and the rest of the body.
Besides being paraplegic, Logan experiences many other complications that go along with the TM diagnosis. The good news is, he gets to have fun.
Through Make-A-Wish, Logan was granted “the most wonderful wish ever.” Make-A-Wish Foundation changed its initial model over 30 years ago to include not just dying children, but those with life-threatening illness, like Logan. The Foundation provided him a sand wheelchair for the day, and lots more.
Lisa explains on Logan’s behalf, “I made sand castles, played in the water, and called myself a surfer because someone let me borrow a boogie board. I was King Kamehameha for a day!”
Logan’s parents said they have never seen a smile on his little face as big as it was that day. They were also treated to “an entire week of non-stop fun at local amusement parks,” says Lisa, much more than they ever expected. It gave the family an emotional break and a big shot of rejuvenation, with a week of no doctors to see or call.
Now, the family wants to turn the tables and bring this kind of joy to another deserving kid and family through Make-A-Wish. That takes funding, and the Sestos are determind to raise the money. As of now, Logan is at about 25 percent of the $7,500 goal necessary to pass the good will forward.
“Each donation received is a further step in one day fulfilling the vision of granting the wish of an eligible child. Please remember there are lots of kiddos just like him that could benefit from a wish to make life just a teeny bit better,” says Lisa. “Please help Logan pay it forward to another. Any amount you can spare makes that number possible.”
The Sestos will be matching all donations received through October 20, 2015.
“Any amount counts,” says Lisa. “Nothing is too big or too small.”
Watch the You Tube video Logan made.
