Like most teenagers, 17-year-old Sean loves music, and even has his own band. Unlike most other kids his age, Sean has been in and out of hospital with chronic pancreatitis since the age of 14. Each attack leaves him confined to bed and attached to a drip, unable to eat or drink.
So it was with pleasure that Katherine Tolley, a senior accountant in the Assurance practice, was able to make one of Sean’s greatest wishes come true.
PwC Foundation teams with Starlight to give PwC people the chance to train to become Starlight ‘wish-granting’ volunteers for seriously ill children. Katherine is one of three Starlight Wish Granters from the Melbourne office in 2005/06. Sean’s Starlight wish was for an amp and guitar. Katherine was honoured to work with Starlight and organise all aspects of Sean’s wish and deliver these gifts to Sean - witnessing the joy on his face when he unwrapped them.
But Katherine had more up her sleeve. Starlight had enhanced Sean’s wish by giving him and his band a day in a recording studio. Sean got to travel in the biggest limo he had ever seen! And just to lighten up the hard work of recording, comedian Dave Hughes called in to see how they were going. Sean was overwhelmed by Starlight’s generosity and described his Starlight wish as "absolutely awesome”. His parents were equally overjoyed, believing that it was a life-changing experience for Sean, as his illness has prevented him doing so many things.
Katherine says it was hard to describe just how she felt granting Sean’s Starlight wish. She found the experience extremely touching and the reaction of Sean and his parents was incredibly rewarding.
