Rachelle Zadunayski’s painting sale has wrapped up and the proceeds raised will be able to send at least 30 kids to the Stollery Hospital’s Camp Neurosurgery.
Rachelle’s mother, Karen, said the sale raised a total of $4,095 for Rachelle’s cause. This amount also includes the $1,400 raised through auctioning off one of her pieces at the Feb. 19 Youth for Christ banquet.
“We were really happy for that, for sure,” Karen said.
The paintings were hung in the Flower Shoppe in downtown Westlock until March 4, where people had a chance to peruse them and place bids on them. Available were five pieces Rachelle had painted and six others donated by local artists.
The success of the sale is not the only exciting event in Rachelle’s life. She was recently selected to be Northland’s first-ever wish child through the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
Make-a-Wish is an international organization that aims to grant the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy, according to their website.
Her selection has created a whirlwind of activity at the family’s Vimy-area home. On March 5, Northlands media people were at the house to take photos of Rachelle to use in the company’s promotional material.
“It was a pretty cool experience for her,” Karen said. “She had her own hair and make-up artist, so she’s like a little celebrity going on here.”
No matter how exciting that may have been, not much can top what happened to her March 4 down in Edmonton.
There, at a big event at Northlands, Rachelle was presented with a sea turtle to feed as a precursor to her wish being granted. That wish? To visit Hawaii and swim with sea turtles, which will happen in August.
In addition to the turtle and being given a trip to Hawaii, several members of the Edmonton Eskimos stopped by with a signed jersey and a game ball.
Perhaps the most exciting was a video conference call from country musician Johnny Reid, who promised to take Rachelle backstage and out for lunch when he’s next in Edmonton.
“Rachelle had an absolutely fantastic day with everything,” Karen said.
In the meantime, Rachelle is continuing to paint, Karen said. She’s working on some pieces for Northlands and the Stollery, to be used in upcoming fundraisers. She’s also starting to get back into painting for her personal collection.
