By JANELLE JENKINS
A heartfelt wish has just come true for a young girl in Pleasant Grove with spinal muscular atrophy.
Eight-year-old Stephanie Evans, daughter of David and Sharilyn Evans of Pleasant Grove, wished for her very own secret garden in which she could play with her dolls and serve punch and cookies at tea parties with her friends.
Thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah and several members of Pleasant Grove community, Stephanie’s wish has come true.
“In Stephanie’s case, a lot of thought went into (the wish) and . . . it came from the heart,” said Teri Nelson, the development director of Utah’s Make-A-Wish Foundation.
“We grant one wish for every Utah child who has a life-threatening disease,” Nelson said.
Spinal muscular atrophy, the disease with which Stephanie suffers, is a genetic disease.
“They were born healthy and normal…basically, their skeletal muscles don’t work properly,” Sharilyn said. “This is a childhood diesase…they won’t have an adult life.”
Children like Stephanie are often referred to the foundation by their health care providers, said Christine Sharer, Utah’s chief executive officer of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Many children wish for a trip to Disneyland or to Disney World, as did Stephanie’s brother Steven, age 6, who also has spinal muscular atrophy. Steven went to Disney World in October 1996, Nelson said.
Some of the most unusual wishes that were fulfilled by the foundation include meeting cast members from “Touched by an Angel,” visiting Egypt, touching a white tiger, going to a family reunion in Tonga and attending a religious pilgrimage for the Baha’i faith.
“Last week a little girl wanted to train whales,” Sharer said.
Stephanie’s wish came about after she watched the movie “The Secret Garden.”
Having watched the movie several times, Stephanie and her brother Steven would plan the type of garden they wanted to have when they were older.
“They used to talk about their garden at night in bed,” said Sharilyn. “She initially wanted to go on a cruise, but it wasn’t accessible enough.”
The garden was Stephanie’s next choice.
“When she decided that’s what she wanted, it’s just come together. It has been really a fun thing,” Sharilyn said.
The secret garden Stephanie envisioned included a waterfall and a birdhouse — both of which are now in her garden.
“I like the sound of (the waterfall) and how it splashes down,” Stephanie said.
After Stephanie told her wish to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah, the organization contacted several people in the community to help construct the garden.
“They contracted a landscaper here in Pleasant Grove — Bratt Landscape — and they drew up plans and oversaw the whole project,” Sharilyn said.
Bratt Landscape’s backhoe operator, Dudley Cronin, helped to set the rocks on a steep slope that frames Stephanie’s garden.
“At one point Stephanie got in the backhoe with him and helped set rocks,”
Sharilyn said.
The rocks were sold at a discounted price by one of Evan’s neighbors, Terry Larsen, the owner of TLC Rock Products, in Pleasant Grove.
Another neighbor, Alan Syme is building an arbor that will be the entrance into Stephanie’s garden, Sharilyn said.
Syme said he and Stephanie looked through some books and drawings to get an idea of the kind of arbor Stephanie wanted.
With a few finishing touches, including some lattice work and paint, the arbor will be completed, Larsen said.
Sharilyn said her other neighbors helped with planting, laying sod and even with electrical work for the gazebo and waterfall.
“It’s just been really a neat thing. Lots of people from the community have been involved and a lot of a family and friends have been involved. It’s been wonderful,” Sharilyn said.
Sponsors that contributed to Stephanie’s secret garden include the Alexis Macfarlane Foundation, the Karl Malone Foundation For Kids and Galileo and Gallo Salame Sandwich Company.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation also raised money for Stephanie’s wish through their Gala Benefit and Auction which was held May 9.
Each year between 80 and 100 children in Utah have wishes fulfilled by the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah.
To make a donation or to give a referral to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah, call 1-800-860-WISH.
