Estevan’s Payton Sernick has been selected as the Saskatchewan ambassador for the Champions Program presented by Walmart Canada.
The program honours remarkable children who have triumphed despite medical challenges.
Each child acts as an ambassador for their Children’s Miracle Network hospital. Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation is the sole Saskatchewan member.
It’s been an emotional rollercoaster of a year for Payton. The nine-year-old is back in hospital after believing she was cancer-free following a two-and-a-half-year battle with Stage 4 acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoma.
Last week, Payton underwent surgery at the Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton to remove a new tumour in her abdomen. Her family is anticipating a stay of up to six months for extensive treatment. She will then become a bone marrow transplant patient in Calgary.
“I can be a voice for kids who really need this hospital,” said Payton. “I can tell people my story and hope they understand what it feels like to be in hospital with a serious disease. The new children’s hospital will be different and really fun. We deserve a place just for us.”
“We’re so proud of Payton for taking her role as Champion Child seriously,” said her parents, Andrea and Cheyenne Sernick. “When being rediagnosed with cancer again, one of her top concerns was making sure she could still represent Saskatchewan kids and the new hospital.
“When she has a goal in place, she makes sure she achieves it. Payton is the sweetest and we adore her determination to get things done; beat cancer- no problem, make sure a hospital gets built - she’s on it.”
Payton was only six years old when she developed unexplained stomach pain so severe she could hardly walk. Her eventual diagnosis was Stage 4 acute lymphoblastic leukemia and lymphoma, with hundreds of tumours growing inside her. It was the worst news imaginable and devastating to the family.
The fight of Payton’s life included 40 days in isolation in hospital, x-rays, tests, ultrasounds, CT and MRI scans, biopsies and bone marrow aspirations, plus many painful episodes of blood work before beginning nearly a full year of intense chemotherapy.
She was exhausted, lost her hair, and even some teeth, but the hardest part of Payton’s 11-month treatment was being away from her little brother Beckham. Payton has spent well over 200 days in hospital so far.
"Payton is our Walmart superhero. She has conquered one battle and is now fighting a second, showing great courage, faith and strength. This experience is one that no child should have to endure,” said Sandra Isbister, operations manager at Walmart Estevan.
“We believe in supporting Children’s Miracle Network to help kids like Payton win the greatest fights of their lives. Keep fighting Payton! As your allies, your Walmart family is supporting you 100 per cent."
The fourth grader’s diagnosis compelled her to share her story with schools and clubs to show other kids that cancer doesn’t have to be scary. Payton and Beckham launched “The Cancer Sucks Project” in 2016, raising over $35,000 for the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation to help kids just like her, who will, at times, call the new children’s hospital home.
As part of the Champions Program, ambassadors from across Canada are invited to attend Children’s Hospitals Week events in Ottawa. Champions and the families also travel to Walt Disney World in Orlando to meet with ambassadors from across North America.
“Payton is an amazingly brave girl and truly a Champion. Her story is a poignant reminder of how precious life can be and how we, as families, never know when we’ll need the services of a children’s hospital close to home,” said Brynn Boback-Lane, president and CEO of the Jim
Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation.
“We are so very proud to have her representing our province’s children in hospital and encourage Saskatchewan to rally around her, wishing her a speedy recovery.”
Payton takes over from 12-year-old Calla Gross of Saskatoon, a former NICU baby.
Follow Payton’s journey, send her good wishes and watch her online video diaries at pattisonchildrens.ca.
