Bringing joy to a child with a life-altering illness is an unforgettable gift. The team at Sutton Group–Signature Realty Inc. recently raised $3,000 to purchase a playground, then constructed it from the ground up in the backyard of a home where Jonah, 2, lives. He suffers from L1CAM Syndrome, a genetic condition that causes an accumulation of fluid in the brain, muscle stiffness and other challenging symptoms.
“Jonah is the sweetest little boy ever and just the look on his face when we presented him and his two sisters the playground was priceless,” said Valerie Fleck, office administrator, and one of the 30 playground builders from this brokerage.
Their project was arranged through Million Dollar Smiles, a non-profit organization that matches children and donors to provide playgrounds, teddy bears and more. The organization will host the first Smiles Run/Walk this August.
“We arrived at Jonah’s house at around 8 a.m. and the organizers from Million Dollar Smiles guided us through the plan, then split us up into groups of five,” Fleck said. “We all had a part to do such as slide, swing set, climbing wall, etc. There were some struggles while building the playground, but we did it!”
In addition to bringing joy to Jonah and his family, she said she saw how happy it made the participants. “Everyone was smiling. They have the biggest hearts when it comes to helping out the community.
“We could not have done it without the organizers from Million Dollar Smiles. Cooper (the family dog) definitely raised the spirits of everyone. We found this whole experience to be a great team-building activity and got some of the agents, who may have not known each other before the day, to find things in common with each other.”
This story was adapted – with permission – from one originally featured on the Sutton Spirit website. The Sutton Spirit program recognizes Sutton associates across Canada that improve and enhance the lives of the people around them.
