Watch: 21-Year-Old Maltese Cancer Survivor – ‘I Will Never Delete Victor Calvagna’s Number From My Phone’
Mariah, a 21-year-old Maltese cancer survivor, has opened up about her journey through the storm and expressed her eternal gratitude to Puttinu Cares and its late founder Victor Calvagna.
“Although he was a nervous person, he would encourage you to stand on your own two feet and keep on going – even though we didn’t use to speak much, I still miss him,” Mariah said.
“I was scrolling through my phone contacts recently, saw his name there and started crying. However, I won’t ever delete it, even if I buy a new phone. He made me the person I am today, someone who never loses heart and who helps others like Puttinu helped me.”
“When hard times come by and you believe it’s all for nothing, you should remember how much you passed through and what other people are currently passing through. There may be a storm today but one day – maybe not tomorrow, but one day – calm seas will arrive.”
Watch the video below which is part of the ‘Survivor Stories’ series, a campaign by SideStreet and Lovin Malta to raise funds for Puttinu.
Mariah was diagnosed with Stage IV neuroblastoma when she was only four years old and spent seven months in the UK receiving treatment. Although it initially looked like she would succumb to the illness, to the point that her original consultant dismissed her as a hopeless cause, Mariah never gave up hope.
“I remember being really sick, seeing my mother in tears or quieter than usual and telling her not to worry about me because I was going to be OK,” she recounted. “I had known I was going to be fine and encouraged others to believe that too.”
She said she wouldn’t have made it without the help of Puttinu Cares, who she described as her “second family”.
“The words ‘thank you’ aren’t enough for them and I will do my utmost to help them out. Without them, many people like myself wouldn’t be here today.”
Puttinu Cares has an upcoming fundraising marathon which will be aired live on all local channels on Good Friday. This year’s edition will run on April 7th, from 9am to 3pm and 9pm to midnight.
If you want to make a difference in the lives of patients and help Puttinu out, here’s how you can do it:
For individuals and smaller organisations who are also keen to help, please visit https://puttinucares.org/your-donation, call the Puttinu Cares donation lines, send a donation by text or bank transfer to
Donation Lines:
5160 2007 – Eur10
5170 2006 – Eur15
5180 2008 – Eur25
5190 2062 – Eur50
SMS Donations:
5061 6499 – Eur1.16
5061 7380 – Eur2.33
5061 8939 – Eur6.99
5061 9225 – Eur11.65
HSBC Bank Transfer
Account number: 089077341001
IBAN: MT55MMEB44897000000089077341001
Swift Code: MMEBMTMT
Cheques can be made payable to Puttinu Cares
Are you going to help Puttinu this year?
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