For her tenth birthday, Tia Taggart received more than 3,000 greeting cards to celebrate another year in her life. The little girl loves getting “Get Well Soon” cards and reading peoples’ dedications to her, so to receive so many truly warmed her heart. With such a wholesome and pure request for her birthday, who could say no?
Taggard was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma: a rare type of cancer that occurs in the bones or in the tissue around it. The disease is more common amongst teenagers and young adults, but it can develop at any stage of life. One of the main issues with this type of cancer is that it can return even after aggressive treatment, so even if a patient has been cleared, the dark days may not be over completely.
Over 3,000 people have come together to make Taggard’s special day even brighter. Instead of asking for a present for her birthday, the little girl wanted to receive as many cards as possible, so her dad called out for people to send in cards through social media. Thanks to Damian Harvey, a family friend, the appeal went viral after much promotion. They thought they would get a couple hundred, but then they counted 2,850 cards in the first batch sent to Taggard.
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The family was overwhelmed by the love and support they received from people in the community. Taggard’s dad recorded her thanking the many people who were kind enough to wish her a happy birthday, and he posted it on social media for everyone to see. She loved every single card she received: “there may be a few thousand, but I will open them all.”
Taggard and her family highlight the good side of social media: it gives you the opportunity to reach out to people who you would have never previously had contact with. It also connects complete strangers together, and they can do amazing things for people in need. Without knowing her personally, people still sent Taggard sweet greeting cards so she would feel special on a day all about her, and they did so without asking for anything in return.
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