This is the kind of news no one wants to receive, especially during the holidays. But that’s exactly what storyteller Fred Pellerin and his daughter Marie-Fée had to experience in 2019.
The father and daughter decided to tell their story as ambassadors of the Grand Sapin de Sainte-Justine.
After a scan the day before in Trois-Rivières, they were told that Marie-Fée had something “monstrous” between her lungs.
“The doctor told us: ‘It’s December 24th, go home and exchange gifts this evening because tomorrow we have to return to Sainte-Justine,'” explains Fred Pellerin.
The 14-year-old was diagnosed with cancer, stage 3 Hodgkin lymphoma.
It had already been a year since Marie-Fée no longer felt at her best, she had back pain and fatigue that no one could explain.
But ultimately it was cancer that took her.
“The fear of dying has settled in like an unexpected guest. Belong to this reality? Never, never,” explains Marie-Fée, now 18 years old, in a text she signed on the CHU Sainte-Justine Foundation website.
Six cycles of chemotherapy and 14 sessions of radiation therapy were necessary to neutralize the cancer in his lymph nodes.
“Countless hours in which Sainte-Justine gradually became my landmark, my fortress,” she emphasizes.
“We returned here on December 24th, which is roughly the winter solstice. The winter solstice is the longest night and the time of year when darkness is greatest. And after the treatments, we were almost at Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day, the summer solstice, the time of year when the light is longest. It’s a story of light,” says Fred Pellerin.
Today Marie-Fée assures us that she is fine. She studies at Collège Brébeuf and dreams of becoming a doctor. She is lucky to still be alive.
She decided to tell her story for the first time to raise awareness about giving through the Grand Fir of Saint-Justine fundraiser.
“Until then, I’m waiting impatiently for the Great Fir Tree to be lit this year. What you will make possible for hundreds of families in search of hope, like mine,” writes Marie-Fée.
The 16th Grand Fir of Sainte-Justine campaign runs until December 7th.