Even if you don’t have children, the thought of a child facing imminent death feels, among so many other things… Unfair.
This is why coming upon the story of four-your-old Gold Coast toddler Paige Skarratts, and the pain her parents, Jacob Skarratts and Tania Miller, are enduring right this minute, leaves a sick feeling in our stomachs.
Eight weeks ago, Paige was living life just like any other happy, healthy four-year-old looking forward to being the flower girl at her mum and dad’s wedding. That was until she started experiencing blinding headaches, which soon led to the diagnosis that she had a cancerous tumour the size of a small lemon in her brain.
Heart-breakingly, despite surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment, the Gold Coast Bulletin report that Jacob and Tania have been told that sweet Paige’s illness is “incurable”.
And it is this life-crushing prognosis that served as the catalyst for Paige’s family to give her the one thing she was so excited for as they could as they prepare to farewell their little girl.
Jacob and Tania’s wedding.
“Paige had such excitement about us getting married,” Tania said as reported by News.com.au.
“Every time we would see people she’d say ‘My mummy and daddy are getting married and I’m going to be a flower girl’.”
Jacob’s sister, Innez, soon became the angel the family needed during this most difficult time – she managed to organise a wedding at Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital so Paige could intend in just 24 hours.
Tania, Jacob, Paige and Paige’s little sister, Imogen, at the hospital wedding ceremony.
“I had people phoning to say what they had done. My sister’s best friend is a cake maker,” Innez says of the family’s community banding together to make this little girl’s dream of watching her parents wed come true.
“One of the mums from Paige’s kindy works for a wedding co-ordinator and organised all the decorations and music.”
“We pulled the wedding together for $1000 and it was the most magical night ever.”
Tania, amid her sorrow, wholeheartedly agrees.
“I always pictured dressing my daughter for my wedding and sharing those special moments and I’ve got that now,” Tania said, adding that even though Paige couldn’t open her eyes for the wedding, having her there was something she will always treasure and remember.
“Paige was beautiful, just absolutely stunning. She was the star of the show … and this has reaffirmed our bond and what we’re about as a family and Paige did that.”
“From the day we had her, she has made us who we are today.”
Innez has set up a GoFundMe page for this family, which can be found by clicking here.
