A four-year-old Iowa boy battling leukemia recently received a superhero-themed bedroom makeover after a nonprofit organization rallied his community together.
Four-year-old Hudson McKearny of Eldridge was diagnosed with leukemia in 2019, according to the nonprofit My Happy Places. Nearly three years into his battle, Hudson came home to a bedroom makeover on Sunday, featuring his favorite superheroes such as Thor, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Captain America, KWQC reported.
The redesign was done by the Mason City-based branch of My Happy Places, which gives sick children bedroom makeovers to provide “them with a fun, safe, and therapeutic environment where they can thrive and heal,” its website states.
“Where do we go to when we’re sick? When we don’t feel good? We retreat to our bedroom,” the nonprofit’s Executive Director Lisa Tan told KWQC. “We just feel giving them their happy place helps exponentially in the healing process.”
My Happy Places works to rally communities together to fundraise for flooring, decor, painting, and installation, KWQC reported.
Jessica McKearny, Hudson’s mother, expressed her gratitude to those in the community who made the redesign possible.
“There are so many needs that we don’t even realize that we need sometimes,” she told KWQC. “To see these local businesses … want to support us. It just shows you how great our community truly is, and they … want to do it just to you know, out of the goodness of their hearts.”
Superheroes and real-life heroes, including officers from the Eldridge and Davenport Police Department and firefighters from the Long Grove Fire Department, paid Hudson a surprise visit during the big debut. Hudson, who hopes to be a police officer when he grows up, is an honorary officer in Eldridge, and his father, Kyle McKearny, says first responders’ support during Hudson’s battle has been monumental.
“It’s turning into friendships, we never thought we’d have before with some of these people. So it’s … awesome,” Kyle told KWQC. “We’re not surprised they’re here, but we still … are blown away when they do show up.”
While Hudson received a total bedroom redesign, the nonprofit made sure to include his sister Violet, who was given a superheroine-themed gift bag.
In a Facebook post, the nonprofit said it received a message from Jessica shortly after its members returned to Mason City:
I keep hearing him tell his sister, “I just love my new room! This is awesome! He wants to keep showing us every single detail of the room!!! We’re still in awe. Our phones have been blowing up how incredible the room looks and the fire trucks and superheroes. You guys are THE BEST!”