Foundation grants wish of Hawaii trip to young man from Chicago suburbs who beat cancer
OAK LAWN, Ill. (CBS) -- A 19-year-old from Oak Lawn will soon celebrate beating cancer by heading to the beaches of Hawaii—thanks to a generous surprise.
Angel Santiago was diagnosed with testicular cancer during his senior year of high school. He had to put his dreams of playing college soccer on hold.
Santiago had surgery to remove the tumor last year, but scans later revealed the cancer had spread. So he began chemotherapy in February 2024, and went through nine cycles he was cancer-free.
On Thursday, a giant, parade float-style genie's lamp pulled up on a flatbed trailer in front of Santiago's house—and a genie popped out.
The genie—on behalf of the Nikolas Ritschel Foundation—granted Santiago's wish of going to Hawaii with his family. He also got signed gear from the Chicago Fire soccer team, and tickets to a Fire game in the spring.
The Nikolas Ritschel Foundation was started by Nikolas Ritschel, who was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma just before he turned 18 and was granted a wish from the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
But the Make-A-Wish Foundation does not grant wishes to those over 18. So the night before Ritschel died in 2012, he asked to find a way to help young people who did not qualify with other wish organizations due to their older age—and the foundation was born.