Today we’d like to introduce you to Silvia Dominguez Vanni.
Hi Silvia, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I would say my story starts on September 10, 2007 the day my sweet, rambunctious, & healthy 4 1/2 years old baby boy, Salvatore, was diagnosed with Stage IV Cancer. My life was completely shattered. Never in a million years did I think that something like this could happen to me, to one of my children. It was truly devastating, and even more so when the doctors told us that he had a 20% chance to live five years. At that very moment, I vowed to do everything I could to save my baby’s life, I never lost hope and I never gave up. We realized at that time that the reason for those grim statistics was a lack of treatment options for our children and of course the lack of treatment options was due to a lack of funding for childhood cancer research. So we started our Mystic Force Foundation to raise money and we established a lab at the University of Miami for this critical research.
For 3 1/2 years, my baby fought for his life. He and I traveled the country in search of a cure. He was treated in 7 different hospitals across five different states, coming home to see our family whenever it was possible. He endured 55 cycles of chemotherapy, 50 rounds of radiation, 12 surgeries, he was in-patient for over 440 days of his short life, he had to have four-point bone marrow biopsies and nuclear scans every three months and he had over 200 blood and platelets transfusions. I came to realize that my baby’s treatment plan was not unique, this is what children battling these aggressive cancers must endure. Tragically, my baby passed away one month shy of his 8th birthday. It was the day a part of me died as well, but it then became my mission in life to save every child I can and to keep all children battling cancer as happy as possible as they go through these grueling treatments.
Which leads me to where I am now, as I continue to do everything that I can to raise awareness of this devastating disease, to raise money for research, and to keep children battling cancer as happy as possible.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Nothing about this journey has been or will ever be easy. The loss of a child is the greatest loss known to mankind. It is a loss that is unimaginable. After Sal’s death, I found everything difficult, just waking up and breathing was difficult. I believed that I would never ever experience joy or happiness again. But with the help of a very dear friend, I came to realize that I needed to live for my other children. His words still echo through my mind. He told me that I was being selfish and that I had no idea what it was like to live without a mother, and that my four other children were suffering also with the loss of their brother. Those words woke me up. My pain was so great that it never occurred to me that my kids were suffering as well. I could not see past my own pain until that moment.
With the help of this friend, I came to realize that I needed to live for my other children and to use my grief and all the love that I have in my heart to help other children who are going through what my baby went through. Grief IS forever, as is the pain. Grief is different for everyone, and we must each learn what to do to get through each day.
For me, that means doing everything I can to help children like my precious baby Salvatore.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Our Mystic force Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity. 100% of donations go directly to impact childhood cancer. We are a 100% volunteer organization with no paid employees. For the last 13 years, I have been raising awareness of childhood cancer, traveling to Washington DC yearly to meet with our congressional leaders to educate them on the plight of our children and to advocate for increased funding for childhood cancer research. Together with my amazing team, we hold fundraising events year-round. We hold blood drives regularly. We hold awareness events throughout the year, we started the very first Childhood Cancer Police Car Initiative five years ago and hold 2 Gold Ribbon Parades a year with our South Florida Police Departments. During the month of September, we collect Childhood Cancer Awareness Month Proclamations from Mayors and cities throughout South Florida. And for over eight years, our Foundation has held monthly in-patient hospital parties and we have granted dozens of amazing ‘Wishes”. Our hospital parties are spectacular and the children always look forward to our arrival (sometimes asking to be admitted for that day!!). Sadly, these parties have temporarily been put on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic. For years I knew that I needed to do more. Children battling cancer are in-patient for weeks to months at a time and when they are not in-patient their little bodies are constantly immuno-compromised so they are not able to go to parks, playgrounds or visit toy stores. I knew these children needed a safe place to go between treatments, so my idea of a safe and magical space came to fruition in 2018 with the opening of my Heroes Hangout, which is the country’s first and only Childhood Cancer Haven dedicated solely to children battling cancer. The Hangout is located in North Miami Beach, which is central to all of our South Florida Hospitals. Heroes Hangout is graciously sponsored by the Dante Law Firm. Victor Dante believed in my vision back in early 2018 and continues to love and support our children.
Our Hangout is 100% community supported with everything being donated by loyal and caring individuals and companies wanting to make a difference in our children’s lives. There is no cost to the families to attend the Hangout or for anything within. At the Hangout children and their families enjoy daily themed events. We celebrate every holiday and have dress up days such as with Santa for Christmas and SuperHeroes for Halloween, we have pajama parties, we celebrate Birthdays, have play dates with other cancer warriors, have ‘hang-out days’, and we hold ‘End of Treatment’ celebrations (our favorite!). We partner with other like-minded organizations and community businesses to grant ‘Wishes’ and to hold special individualized events. Especially now, during the pandemic, the center has been such a blessing to the families in South Florida, as it is truly the only safe place that children can go to escape the horrors of their everyday life battling cancer. Being able to play and have fun like all kids should is an essential part of getting through the difficult treatments as well as the recovery process. Our Hangout walls are lined with donated toys for our children to ‘shop’ (at no cost). The cost of cancer treatments is unfathomably expensive and for some of our families, the mere act of buying their child a toy to bring them some happiness is a luxury they cannot afford. I am truly humbled and thankful for everyone who supports us and donates items for our magical Hangout so that we may continue to bring so much joy & happiness.
Of all the things that I have done in my life, aside from my precious children, Heroes Hangout is by far my greatest accomplishment and what I am truly the most proud of. To see children who are battling such a devastating disease and enduring torturous and barbaric treatments come to the Hangout and be able to laugh and play and have fun without the stress and anxiety of the hospital and the outside world is a feeling that I cannot explain in words. When one of those children hugs me and tells me that they love the Hangout, my heart just bursts with happiness, something that I thought could never happen. When I see the joy on the parent’s faces, it brings tears to my eyes, remembering what it felt like to me when anyone did anything to make my baby happy. These are the moments I live for.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I knew that my idea of a Childhood Cancer Haven was a risk. I was told that it was a silly idea, that it could never happen, and that I should not waste my time. But that didn’t stop me. I knew that it was something that had never been done before. I knew that asking people and companies to donate items for a location that may or may not fail was a risk. I knew it was a risk asking someone I have never met before to take a chance on me and my vision, on my dream, and give me space for free. I knew it was a risk reaching out to large companies like Coca-Cola to ask for huge donations of items.
But I had a vision and I had a dream. And I have passion. A passion for children who suffer like my own baby did. A passion for making these children happy. A passion for parents like me who suffer watching their own child suffer. I have a passion for making a difference in their lives, and I was not going to let anything or anyone stop me. When someone asks me how I am able to accomplish the things I do and receive donations from so many individuals and companies, my answer is always the same. I ASK. I tell my story and I ask for what I need or want. If someone tells me no, which rarely happens, then I’m no worse off than if I had not asked and I move on to the next. But the truth of the matter is, I have come to realize that there are so many good people in the world, there are so many people willing to help, but they don’t know how. All you have to do is ask. And that’s what I do.
If I had not taken a risk and followed my dream, we would not have brought so much happiness to the hundreds of children that have visited and continue to visit our Heroes Hangout.
Life is about taking risks, it’s about trying, no matter the outcome. Nothing amazing or important is ever accomplished without taking some kind of risk.
Contact Info:
- Email: Silvia@MysticForceFoundation.com
- Website: http://MysticForceFoundation.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mysticforcefoundation/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MysticForceFoundation
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLmHz3qM_tfmp9NTsJl8fJg
- Other: https://www.HeroesHangoutMiami.com
