Karlysle, age 5, was presented with his Dream to Disney World during the ODU/VT football game earlier this season. He was pumped about his upcoming trip, and we were so excited to hear all about it upon his return. 

Karlysle and his family packed in a lot of parks – Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Peppa Pig Land, SeaWorld – but his favorite park, by far, was LegoLand. “He’s obsessed with Legos, so being able to see the mini world made of Legos was really cool. It really made his creativity spark. Since we’ve been home, he’s been trying to recreate everything he saw there,” his mother told us.  

Karlysle also had loads of fun on the Teacups. “One of his favorite things was the Teacups,” his mother said. “He liked to spin it as fast as it could go and ride it over and over again,” she added. 

An added surprise for Karlysle was getting to see three axolotls during his trip. “He’s obsessed with them, and he was so excited to see them in real life,” his mother told us. 

Karlysle and his family loved their time at Give Kids the World. “It was so special and so helpful because everything was wheelchair accessible,” his mother said. They made sure to participate in many of the Village’s fun activities, but the one that stuck out the most for Karlysle was when he got a balloon animal in the shape of an octopus. When it came time to pop it before his journey home, Karlysle asked for a picture of him with it so he would have it forever. “He still asks every single day to see the photo,” his mother said. 

The highlight for Karlysle’s mother was getting to see her boys so happy. “This meant so much to us and it felt like such an amazing award for Karlysle,” she reflected. 

We are thrilled that this little fighter had such a good time at Disney with his family and made so many wonderful, lasting memories. It was a very well-deserved award, indeed!  

We are thankful for our partnership with #ChartwayPromiseFoundation for helping to fund this Dream for Karlysle and his family and for making his Dream reveal such a fun event!