REBECCA’S WISH CO-FOUNDERS HONORED WITH PRESTIGIOUS 2023 POINTS OF LIGHT AWARD
21-year-old Rebecca Taylor and her mother Christyn were chosen for their fierce dedication and advocacy for children with pediatric pancreatitis, a little known disease that Rebecca was diagnosed with at the age of 7.
Texas residents Rebecca and Christyn Taylor have been chosen as The George H.W. Bush Points of Light Award 2023 honorees. 21-year-old Rebecca and her mother Christyn were selected because of the work they’ve done through Rebecca’s Wish.
21-year-old Rebecca and her mother Christyn were selected because of the work they’ve done through Rebecca’s Wish. The organization was created when Rebecca was 12-years-old after the Make A Wish Foundation granted her wish to form a group to help other children with pediatric pancreatitis, the rare, little known and excruciatingly painful condition she’s had since the age of 7. The national non-profit has since raised more than $3 million dollars to support families whose children have the disease, advance cutting-edge medical research and fund fellowships to train doctors to treat pediatric pancreatitis patients.
“On behalf of children suffering with pancreatitis around the world, Rebecca’s Wish is honored to receive The George H. W. Bush Points of Light Award,” says Christyn Taylor, Rebecca’s mom and the President of Rebecca’s Wish. “As Texans, this award is especially meaningful to us given our lifelong admiration and respect for President Bush. This recognition acknowledges that great purpose can evolve from great adversity. It is a distinct privilege to be chosen for this very special award.”
Rebecca’s mother Christyn leads Rebecca’s Wish efforts to foster partnerships, drive advancements in treatment and care for young patients and provide hope and support through medical grants, scholarships and awareness campaigns. Rebecca’s Wish also provides supportive care to thousands of patients and their families through travel reimbursements to and from hospitals, a summer camp called Camp Hope, and much more.
As for Rebecca, she has defied all odds. Doctors told her family that she wasn’t expected to live past the age of 12. Today she is 21. She has been hospitalized more than 1,500 days over 13 years for stretches, had 150 surgeries including a life-saving experimental pancreas transplant, had seven of her organs removed and nearly died multiple times. She is now a biomedical engineering major at Texas A&M University doing medical research to advance understanding and treatment options for pediatric pancreatitis.
“I wanted to start a pancreatic charity for other children so they don’t suffer like I did. I’m really proud of what my mom and I have created since then and I’ll work on this until the day I die,” Rebecca Taylor says. “Rebecca’s Wish not only gives me a way to help others; it also helps me focus on something greater than myself and that, surprisingly, has helped my own pain.”
Other recipients of the 2023 Points of Light Award include Mike and Jacquelyn Love, Condoleezza Rice and Robert F. Smith. Former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama will once again serve as honorary co-chairs, with Marie and Andy Unanue and Alan H. Fleischmann and Dafna Tapiero serving as co-chairs. Points of Light has a private awards selection committee that includes longtime advisors of Points of Light, Bush family members and Points of Light Board members.
About Rebecca’s Wish
Rebecca’s Wish has a three-pronged approach to bring hope to pediatric patients with chronic pancreatitis. It works to improve inpatient and outpatient care, provide charitable care and drive education and research into pediatric pancreatitis to find a cure, train doctors, develop more treatments and tools, advance transplants and more. Learn about this foundation and join the fight at RebeccasWish.org.
About Pediatric Pancreatitis
Long thought to be extremely rare, it’s now estimated there are 3 to 13 cases of pediatric pancreatitis in every 100,000 children. Chronic pancreatitis is a life-long affliction and progressive inflammatory disorder. There is no cure. It causes relentless and excruciating abdominal pain, vomiting and more. Severe cases require immediate hospitalization and intensive care treatment. The disease is often misdiagnosed and misunderstood because doctors don’t know to look for it in children and often confuse it with other conditions. Children often need a hospital stay and NPO status (not eating or drinking) plus IV pain medication. In severe cases, pancreas transplants, which are still considered an experimental procedure, may be required to save the child’s life.
Laura Evans
Laura Evans Media
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