Make-A-Wish gives Roxboro teen cancer survivor opportunity to bond with family, nature

Cancer survivor Bethany Brandon, 15, was given a second chance at being a healthy teenager and Tuesday, she received another gift.

“I was very excited and shocked. I couldn’t stop smiling,” she said.

Make-A-Wish of Eastern North Carolina came through with a surprise that Brandon dreamed of for a while, but never saw coming. She received a camper, decked out in lights, with everything she could want inside.

“The first time I went camping with my family, it meant so much to me because it was a bonding moment that we could actually get together and be together,” Branson said.

The camper represents an opportunity to have more bonding moments.

Brandon was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma, a bone cancer, at age 12. Now, just months away from her 16th birthday, her scans are clear and she’s ready to hit the road.

“Cancer took things from her that she might not ever be able to do again, but this she can still do,” said Brandon’s mother, Lynn Brandon. “She can still hike, she can still camp, she can still be active and be able to share the love of nature and the love of God to everyone she meets.”

Bethany’s doctor told her the goal was to have stories to tell her grandchildren. With modern medicine, her faith and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, she’s on the way to creating those memories.

“I get to celebrate having a second chance at life,” she said.

Bethany said she wants her first trip in the camper to be to Yellowstone National Park.