Anchors Aweigh! Lana's Boat Wish Sets Sail 

A bubbly four-year-old from Salisbury, MD, wish kid Lana loves to have fun and be surrounded by her family. This little girl knows what she wants; she will only eat Meatball Pizza Hot Pockets, BBQ chips and M&Ms, and loves the whipped icing off her favorite vanilla cupcakes. So no one in her family was surprised that Lana wish revolved around one of her favorite activities – fishing.   

Ever since Lana was diagnosed with leukemia at seven months old, being by the water calmed her. She is most content being near the water close to her family home and has grown up enjoying fishing there with her father. Although both of Lana’s siblings and parents have been out on a boat before, Lana never previously had the opportunity. When the possibility of wishing for a pontoon boat was mentioned, Lana bounced around the room with her fishing hat, dreaming aloud as to whether her boat could be purple, blue or pink. Then she exclaimed that with her boat she wanted to “ride on it, go swimming and fish with dad”.

Lana’s wish finally came true in December 2021, when members of NC Marine Sales drove all the way from North Carolina to deliver her pontoon boat. Complete with a pink flag proclaiming “Lana’s Boat,” Lana ran right up to her boat with a huge smile and couldn’t wait to sit in the big captain’s chair - although she declared that her father would actually be the captain. Her family was overjoyed to see her so happy, and relieved that this new family activity would allow them all to keep a safe distance from others due to Lana’s immune-suppressed condition. Lana now has the freedom to enjoy the fresh air and create new joyful memories on her very own boat for years to come!

A special thank you to NC Marine Sales who supplied Lana’s new pontoon and A Ghra Photography for capturing Lana’s wish day.