Make-A-Wish and Cake Bake helps celebrate 5-year-old cancer survivor with special birthday cake
CARMEL, Ind. (WISH) — Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana threw a special birthday celebration on Thursday for a young girl from Carmel who is battling cancer.
Marley Ohmer has been in a fight with ganglioneuroblastoma, a slow-growing tumor, ever since she was diagnosed in 2017. Her parents Lindsay and Toby have been in that fight right alongside her.
KJ McGillan, with Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, says a plan for a special birthday party for Marley started with a connection she had already made with Gwendolyn Rogers, the owner of The Cake Bake Shop.
“It really all started with the way that Gwen meets a lot of people,” McGillan said. “She brought me a cake.”
She then introduced Marley to Gwendolyn.
“I knew right away Marley and Gwendolyn need to meet,” McGillan said. “They belong together.”
Gwendolyn talked about the impression that the five-year-old had made on her since that meeting.
“I think I’m in love,” Gwendolyn said. “I couldn’t be more blessed and more grateful to have this little girl in my life, so I don’t know what kind of impact I’m making on her, but she’s making one heck of an impact on me.”
“It’s so awesome to see their bond and to see them connect like this,” Lindsay said.
Gwendolyn and her team at The Cake Bake Shop decided to make a special cake to celebrate Marley’s birthday. The cake is called the Wishes Cake.
Toby watched as his daughter got to be the first one to taste the cake and what that moment meant to his family.
“It’s incredibly special and you can just tell when she walked in here her eyes just lit up,” Toby said. “Just to see how happy little things like this make her, it just leaves an impression on us.”
Marley’s fifth birthday also comes with some even better news from the family.
“She’s completed her treatment, and she has no evidence of disease.”
“It’s the perfect way to celebrate so many great things going on right now and how well Marley is doing,” McGillan said.
50% of the proceeds from sales of the Wishes Cake will be donated to Make-A-Wish Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana to help make life-changing wishes come true for local children with critical illnesses.
Make-A-Wish OKI is also granting Marley’s wish to go to Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii. That dream is coming true in March.
Click on the Marley’s March link to find out more about her story.
Marley blew out her birthday candles live on Facebook Wednesday.