A feel good story

Here's a story that was in the Sawyer County Record

Girl’s wish granted on the Big Chip
by Terrell Boettcher

A 14-year-old Milwaukee girl battling terminal non-Hodgkins Lyphoma received a dream trip on the Chippewa Flowage on a brand new pontoon, thanks to Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin and a Hayward area business.

On Thursday Aug. 12, Cheyenne Popp, her parents Kim and Larry, sisters Sierra and McKenzie and best friend Tara Geshrick took their first ride on a 25-foot pontoon boat on the Chippewa Flowage.

The pontoon was presented earlier to the family by Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin, and was outfitted last week by Mel Vanwey, owner of Mel’s Outdoor Power at the junction of Highways B and CC. The TMC pontoon was presented to Cheyenne and her family recently at the Milwaukee Yacht Club by the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Wisconsin with the help of wish sponsor United Health Care and other sponsors including Johnson Insurance/Johnson Outdoors.

Johnson Evinrude donated a new 90-horsepower engine to put on the pontoon. Vanwey picked up the TMC pontoon from the factory and he and Tim Price rigged it with a items including a battery.

“We’ve probably got $1,000 into it; that’s what we donated to her,” Vanwey said.

Cheyenne’s mom said Cheyenne “likes to fish” and has fished Big Chetac Lake out of Birchwood.”She also has hunted with her dad in the Blue Hills. So she’s really an outdoor person. The pontoon was a perfect fit for her. She wanted something where we could all go fishing together.”

“TMC was contacted by Make-A-Wish to build the pontoon boat for us, and between TMC and United Health Care—who bought the boat—they contacted Evinrude and got a 90-HP motor donated,” Kim added.

Kim added that her grandparents Ron and Ruth Applebee are originally from Ladysmith.

“We’ve been coming up here for as long as I can remember,” she said

Cheyenne’s dad said he was overwhelmed with the response from Make-A-Wish, TMC and Mel’s.

The family planned to spend last weekend fishing as well as tubing on the lake.

Good things do happen.

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