On February 6, Dream Foundation, the first national wish-granting organization for adults in the end stages of life, will fulfill Ed Demyan's final dream - to witness the ultimate American sporting event, the Super Bowl. Demyan, 47, of Brooklyn, Ohio, is a proud father three daughters (11, 14, 22) and a future step-daughter (15). He will be joined by his fiancé, Marykaye Mackulin, at the game. Demyan's hometown team, the Cleveland Browns, helped Dream Foundation secure the coveted tickets.
“We are honored to be able to serve Ed's dream”
In November, 2010, Demyan wrote to Dream Foundation with his Super Bowl dream. Just six months previously, Ed had received the news that he had Stage III Pancreatic Cancer. After 13 chemotherapy treatments, 33 days of radiation, and the complete removal of his pancreas, spleen, and gallbladder, he received the news that his cancer had spread to his bones. In Ed's letter to Dream Foundation he says, "…this time, hope is frightfully limited. I have been given the terminal diagnosis of six months. Will I continue to fight? I will. Am I realistic about the outcome? I am."
Since the Browns are out of the running, Demyan says they'll be heartily rooting for the Packers. "Green Bay Packers all the way, if it can't be the Browns, it has to be Packers," said Demyan
Demyan and Mackulin have been close friends for a decade, and became a couple five years ago. While they had planned to get married before Demyan's diagnosis, mounting medical expenses have caused them to indefinitely postpone their wedding. Still, according to Mackulin, their focus now is finding ways to spend quality time together. "When faced with his terminal diagnosis, Ed and I thought, what can we do that we normally would never have a chance to do?" said Mackulin. "Our mutual love of football was evident from the very beginning of our relationship and it just seemed the perfect choice."
Mackulin adds that it couldn't have happened without the help of the Dream Foundation. "Every once in a while there is an organization that leaves you completely speechless. That organization is the Dream Foundation. They made this once-in-a-lifetime dream a reality. I call it magic!" said Mackulin.
"We are honored to be able to serve Ed's dream," says Dream Foundation Founder, Thomas Rollerson. "While the Super Bowl is the specific theme of the dream, the underlying theme is consistent with all of the dreams we receive at the Dream Foundation: a joy-filled reprieve from disease. Ed and Marykaye deserve time away from his prognosis."
Demyan's dream itinerary package was hand-delivered by Dream Host Volunteers on February 1, complete with green and yellow balloons and Packers jerseys. Using donated Continental Airlines miles, Dream Foundation will be flying Demyan and his fiancé from Cleveland to Houston, where they'll be staying from Thursday, February 4 though Monday, February 7. Dream Foundation is also covering their hotel stay and per diem while they're there. As well, as part of Dream Foundation's Toy and Teen program, which supports the children of a dream recipient, Demyan's daughters received packages of toys, fragrances, and hair products.
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