The Countdown to Christmas is on, but it may as well have been Saturday for some of the bravest kids from local hospitals and their families.
Santa himself invited more than 100 of them to the North Pole.
Kids from Cleveland Clinic Children’s, University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s, and from Kids Again took off from Hopkins International airport on United Airlines flight 800.
"Our oldest, Bryson, was diagnosed with cancer at just 5 month old,” Katie Palmer of Toledo told Reporter Dawn Kendrick and Photo Journalist Raquel Hagman.
“He went through 18 months of cancer treatment. Then he had progressive scarring of his lungs from the chemotherapies that he got," Palmer explains.
"His last chance was a lung transplant and he got a double lung transplant to save his life," for the donor family who had to lose a child and then gave the gift of life to save Bryson.
"We were very close to the end with him and they came just in time. So, what a wonderful miracle and we cherish every moment with him"
Every row up and down the United Airlines flight has a similar story of little heroes fighting to survive. Most stories are still being written, with a long tough road ahead.
But when they touched down in a transformed North Pole Airport terminal, it was magical.
For this moment in time, even these kids were “transformed”.
Santa and Mrs. Claus were waiting just for them at Santa’s workshop.
Cinderella was there.
So were Spiderman and Batman.
They came from “Superheroes to Kids in Ohio”, a group of great people who live to put smiles on the faces of deserving kids fighting for their own lives.
There were games all over the place.
Everywhere kids turned there were sugar laced donuts and cookies and candies. Enough to make a kid buzz for days.
Because Saturday was about all the rules in real life, the protocol and rigid agenda of literally trying to stay alive, taking a back seat.
This day they took a seat instead, on a United Airlines flight, were whisked away and walked into a world where it was simply about smiles and celebrating entire families.
Families, who, every day rise up and face cancer, and birth defects and blood disorders head on. Fighting to win.
"It makes my heart so full,” said Linda Jacobs of United Airlines with a smile that proves it.
“To be able to give back to these families, to come here and forget for a few hours their sicknesses, their diseases, and be part of something special. And when United Airlines puts this on every year, every single person you see helping to pull it off today is a volunteer. It really is truly, so rewarding,” said Jacobs.
Kathy and Paul Zentner of Strongsville came to the North Pole with daughters Madelyn and Katelyn.
"They both have a rare genetic disorder. They are the first cases in the whole world," said Kathy Zentner.
"They are both wheelchair bound, nonverbal and have a lot of medical complications like epilepsy. Madelyn has to be tube fed only and has a spinal surgery coming up in January," Kathy Zentner with an undeniable resolve that they will get through it all. But it feels so good when someone, especially strangers, reach out.
“We're so thankful for United Airlines and the community and volunteers for bringing some joy to this christmas season for all of us," said Kathy Zentner.
Yes, for the Zentners, it’s all things in Gratitude.
"So often in life we run through it, we’re rushing through it and these girls make us slow down and be grateful for every day, every breathe that we have. And truly we are thankful for every breath that they take too. So we are very appreciative and we love these girls very much," said Paul Zentner from behind Katelyn’s wheelchair.
Bryson, the happy healthy little guy alive to today, and breathing through donated lungs that saved his life?
You should have seen his eyes light up when elves handed him a whole bag of gifts.
"The gifts are awesome and one of our United Airlines elves calls all the families and gets a wish list from every one of them," said Jacobs.
"It’s so personal! And not just the kids who are sick. It’s siblings and parents too! We give them gift cards and backpacks"
But at United Airlines they know, the words the rest of the world tosses around this time of year, “Joy”, “Miracle”, “Gifts”, have a particularly powerful meaning for the families who graced the North Pole Saturday.
"The gift of organ donation. I couldn't think of a better thing than that," says Bryson’s mom who, like the rest of the parents we met, is rooted in gratitude every single day, for the gift that IS that day.