As promised, we have photos from the exhilarating Make-A-Wish car
donation to local teen, Joseph Sheahan! The following is from an article
published in the Sheboygan Press by Bob Petrie on October 8th:“Sheahan, 18, who has been battling Ewing’s Sarcoma, a rare, fast-growing form of cancer, stopped in at Van Horn Chevrolet in Plymouth with family and friends to pick up his 2001 Hyundai Tiburon, which was fully restored by members of the dealership’s body shop crew as part of a Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin project.
When Sheahan got his first look at the restoration, during which several crew members transformed the drab silver car into a sleek showpiece painted in Lamborghini orange pearl mica with vertical doors, a rear wing and really, really sharp rims and wheels, he was humbled by the gesture and absolutely speechless. There were plenty of cheers from those who came to watch the unveiling.”It was just amazing … You don’t have a smile big enough. It’s crazy,” Sheahan said later, before taking the car out for a brief spin.
The restoration, which cost about $12,000, was paid for through
donations from Make-A-Wish and Van Horn Chevrolet, and it took roughly
150 to 200 man-hours to complete the work, according to David Mintner,
body shop manager. The job began in late July, and was finished last
Friday.“There was definitely a lot of enthusiasm, especially as you got closer to the end,” said Mintner, adding that his two leads in the body shop, Michael Watson and Randy Kluck, were instrumental in keeping the project moving along.
“We were very proud of the job my men did,” Mintner said. “I couldn’t believe the outcome.” Joseph’s parents, Mike and Diane Sheahan of Sheboygan Falls, were
equally overwhelmed by the work that was put into the car and the job
Make-A-Wish did in helping the family deal with their son’s
illness. ”It’s just unbelievable,” said Diane Sheahan, 54. “They just do
a fantastic job making all these wishes come true. I don’t know how
they do it.” Mike Sheahan, 55, said of the job the Van Horn crew did, “I
can’t believe how nice it looks. It’s wilder than my wildest dreams.”The family met with area Make-A-Wish volunteers Patti Cosgrove and Jan Sartori to review Joseph’s request last spring, when Joseph was still in a wheelchair recovering from surgery to remove the aggressive cancer. He had been looking on the Internet at various Tiburons, looking for a color scheme that he liked, and was able to work with Make-A-Wish to make the project a realistic request.
On Thursday, Cosgrove said of Sheahan’s recovery, “He has made so
much progress, it’s absolutely amazing to me.”It was a bit over a year
ago when Sheahan, who was playing with some nunchucks he purchased,
banged his right leg below his knee, causing a serious bruise. When it
didn’t heal, that’s when he had it checked, and eventually, doctors
discovered the cancer.“It’s amazing how things might happen like that,” Sheahan said, adding that the bruise was a lucky break for him, since that particular form of cancer grows so fast. Surgery, which lasted 12 hours, was performed, and Sheahan also had to have the knee replaced. He underwent 14 chemotherapy treatments, and needed therapy to get back on his feet again.”If he didn’t have the treatment, he basically would have been dead within a year,” Mike Sheahan said.
The best news is that Joseph is now considered cancer-free, though he still goes to Milwaukee for three-month checkups.”I’m doing really good. Walking good. Everything’s good,” he said. “Everything’s looking clear on the scans and everything.” At first, the doctors weren’t sure that Joseph could move his foot up and down, but he said, “Physically, everything turned out good. So God had a lot of play in it.”
Mike Sheahan believes the Make-A-Wish program, which grants wishes of
children with life-threatening medical conditions to help them find
something positive to look forward to, also had a big effect in his
son’s recovery.“It (the car restoration) was something to look forward to rather than like the chemo that you’re going through at the time or even the surgery,” he said. “(It was like) ‘OK, I’m going through this now, but I do have something to look forward to. At the end, everything’s going to be great’.”
The Sheahans’ one drawback: while the Tiburon was in the shop, the
family was a car down, meaning there were a few scrambles to get
everyone to work and school.”We were going back and forth … we were both
driving the vehicle, so it was kind of like, ‘When do you need it?’”
Mike Sheahan said. “OK, we can work that out.”The final reward came on Thursday, when Joseph got his car back, slid into the driver’s seat, and immediately had to learn the controls of the new Kenwood high def radio and DVD deck, with a 6.1-inch screen.”I’ve always loved cars like this,” he said, beaming and grateful for the generosity. “It’s amazing that I have one now.”