At just 15 months old, doctors diagnosed Elle Grace Morris with cystic fibrosis.
Now, as a lively 10-year-old, Elle lives her life connected to an oxygen tank full-time, takes a host of other daily medications, and uses daily ventilators, inhaler treatments, and so on.
Recently, Elle's condition took a turn for the worst when she contracted micro bacterium abscesses — requiring she receive a double lung transplant within a year's time.
Doctors told her mother, Becky Morris, that even with new lungs, her daughter had a 50/50 chance of survival. Without a transplant, that survival chance decreased to zero.
Feeling utterly powerless amidst this new diagnosis, Elle's mother sat by her daughter's bedside, and idly asked her to make a wish list of all the things she'd most like to do before her birthday. Then, Morris posted the list online, and changed both her and her daughter's lives forever.
Elle's wish list went viral. Soon, loved ones, strangers, and even celebrities began getting in touch, offering to help Elle check tasks off her list.
Keep scrolling to learn all about all the wonderful ways little Elle's lifelong dreams have already started coming true.
[H/T: Daily Mail]
Elle Grace Morris has lived most all of her 10 years battling cystic fibrosis.
Diagnosed at just 15 months old, this little Nantwich-in-Cheshire native is now connected to an oxygen tank full-time, takes a slew of other medications, and uses all sorts of different inhalers and ventilators every day.
Recently, Elle's condition started spiraling further downhill when she contracted micro bacterium abscesses.
Doctors also told her mother, Becky Morris, that her daughter would now need a double lung transplant within the year.
While there was a 50 percent chance that this double lung transplant would save her daughter's life, it could just as likely be her demise. Furthermore, without it at all, her survival chances became, instead, totally nonexistent.
As Morris, told Daily Mail: "The doctors said we should seriously consider not opting for transplant because of the severity and risks of the surgery.
"But we also knew Elle’s time was limited without that. We just couldn’t give up."
Unsure of quite how to be her daughter's beacon of joy after learning such heart-wrenching news, Morris sat with her daughter in the hospital and just started chatting about a trip they had planned for the near future. The two began rattling off all the things Elle was excited to do on her vacation.
Before long, Morris had diverted her little girl's attention from her awful illness onto her hopes and dreams.
At her mom's prompt, Elle began writing a list of the 10 things she'd love to accomplish before her upcoming birthday.
As Morris told Daily Mail, "I just wanted her to choose anything after so much bad had happened, to focus on some dreams. So she picked up a piece of paper and a pencil and wrote a list."
Then her mother took that list, posted it online, and set a magical chain of events in motion.
While the family was away, enjoying their trip to Florida — hitting every major theme park — a local newspaper ran a story about Morris and her wish list.
By the time they returned, a friend of a friend had already made one of Elle's 10 wishes come true: They found her a set of X Factor tickets.
Before long, friends, family members, and swarms of strangers began reaching out to Morris, wanting to help make Elle's wishes come true however they could.
A few of Morris' friends helped her start her daughter a Facebook page, and Twitter and GoFundMe accounts — to manage the flood of inquiries and offers now coming their way.
Morris told Daily Mail, "So many people were pulling strings in the background to help us."
While some of her wishes — like being a princess for the day or getting a dog — seemed quite in-character for a soon-to-be 10-year-old, others were remarkably selfless.
Elle wanted to do a bike ride for cystic fibrosis. She wanted to promote organ donation.
As her mom explained, "The fact that my poor little girl who was so terribly ill was thinking of others made me well up, and I had to pretend I’d seen something so I could walk away from her bed and not let her see my tears."
And that pure goodness is likely what inspired so many folks to reach out in support of this lovely little girl, and her big, beautiful dreams.
Elle got to participate in her cystic fibrosis bike ride. She and 50 friends got to become princesses for the day at her 10th birthday blowout bash.
Of the birthday bash: "She was chauffeur-driven in a Bentley to the Grade 1-listed castle dressed as a princess, then driven around the grounds in a horse and carriage, cheered along the way by all the ‘royal pageants and courtiers!'
"Later on, around 50 friends and family joined the party, also in fancy dress, along with actors playing Cinderella, Prince Charming, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna from Frozen.
“With a six-foot chocolate fountain and loads of fun and games, it was the most amazing day — ticking off wishes five and 10.”
She even got to hang out with adorable cockapoo puppies — though she soon became too sick to be able to bring one home with her as a pet.
Producers from Junction Video Productions even got in touch, and helped Elle shoot a music video for her favorite song, "Fight Song" by Rachel Platten.
All of her friends from school got to be in the video, and they had an epic paint fight after filming wrapped.
A few weeks later, Elle even got to meet Rachel Platten at the Lorraine show.
Morris said: "We went and watched Rachel live, then met her in her dressing room.
“They had a sing-along and Elle sat on her knee, Rachel signed a CD and even wrote a note to Elle’s teacher at school excusing her from class, saying: ‘She is busy singing with me. Oops! Sorry for any inconvenience. Love Rachel Platten and Elle.'”
Platten also recorded an intro for Elle’s music video, helping her cover accrue over 80,000 views on YouTube.
And Platten wasn't the only celebrity Elle's gotten the chance to meet.
She also spent time with Olly Mur, Dynamo, and Rita Ora.
Thirty-five A-list celebrities even joined forces to record "Life Unlimited," a charity single that used clips of Elle's breathing throughout.
Since beginning all of these different initiatives, the Morris family has been able to raise thousands in donations for Cystic Fibrosis Trust, a charity devoted to aiding those living with cystic fibrosis and, some day, finding a cure.
While all these wonderful gifts, experiences, and opportunities have been unbelievable blessings, Morris' only real wish for her daughter is a long, happy, healthy life.
As she explained: "But while my phone’s constantly ringing with offers of amazing trips and calls of support, there’s actually only one call I want, and that’s the one saying suitable lungs have been found to get my little girl better.
“So I have just two wishes. I want Elle to have a successful transplant, which has to happen in the next year. And I want more people to sign up to the organ donor register to save so many lives, which are needlessly wasted.”
This little girl's community has rallied in beautiful support of her health journey, and continues holding out hope that she'll receive new, healthy lungs soon.
What do you think of Morris' story? Have you, or a loved one, been diagnosed with cystic fibrosis? Tell us about your journey in the comments below.
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