Radiation treatments decreased the size of the tumor and doctors are now using chemotherapy to try to kill it.
But because the tumor -- a type which tends to regrow -has reached his spinal cord, the prognosis for Thomas is poor.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation began four years ago in Phoenix, Arizona, when Chris Greicius was dying of leukemia.
The 7-year old had always wanted to be a policeman.
Tom Austin, a police officer and friend of Chris' mother, organize a special day for Chris with other officers.
Chris was given a badge and his own uniform and spent the day riding in a patrol car and police helicopter.
The boy died five days later.
The officers decided to start a foundation to fulfill the wishes of other terminally ill children.
Within four years, 46 chapters of Make-A-Wish formed around the country, with national headquarters in Phoenix.
Make-A-Wish has since fulfilled the wishes of more than 2,000 children.
The Greater Bay Area chapter, formed in January 1984, has granted the wishes of 55 children.
"1 think what's so important is to be able to give them something that they wouldn't otherwise have," wish coordinator Pat Keller said.
"Going to the zoo, a Cabbage Patch doll, just the simplest things in life -- to them, that's the biggest thrill in life.
"It sort of becomes a dream for the whole family.
A lot of kids, even if they get a lot worse, absolutely hang on until their wish because they know they're going to do something they have always wanted to do.
And that's pretty special.
A 5-year-old from Travis Air Force Base went to Minnesota at Christmas to visit his grandparents and saw snow for the first time.
A 16-year-old was given a trail bike.
A 15-year-old and three of his friends went to the recent Madonna concert in San Francisco.
One boy asked for a million dollars.
But the foundation cannot perform miracles.
The boy settled for a $1,000 shopping spree in a toy store.
Based in Hayward, the chapter is run entirely by volunteers.
Money and services are donated by individuals, community groups, small businesses and large companies.
Don Arnold, president of the board of directors, promotes Make-A-Wish and recruits volunteers with a 20 to 30 minute presentation that includes a videotape of some of the first wishes granted by the foundation.
"People really do get touched by this program," he said.
"It's not hard to sell.
"Calls about terminally ill children come to the foundation from doctors, nurses, social workers, relatives, friends and neighbors.
Friends called Make-A-Wish about Thomas without telling his family.
After talking to a child's parents about Make-A-Wish, a volunteer then contacts the child's doctor to obtain signed verification that the child is considered terminally ill.
Next, a wish interview is set up.
If possible, two volunteers go to the family's home.
One meets with the parents to complete paperwork.
The other volunteer talks with the child, ideally in a separate room so the child feels free to express his wish without being influenced by his parents.
Like Thomas, 70 to 80 percent of the children want to go to Disneyland, according to Pat Keller.
The Youngs' trip began when Thomas, his brother Paul, 5; his sister Kelly, 15, and their parents, Harvey and Ellen, were picked up at their Modesto home by a white limousine and chauffeured to the airport.
In Anaheim they stayed at a lodge near Disneyland that provides free rooms to Make-A-Wish families.
The next morning, Thomas' dream began to unfold.
Standing at the gate to Disneyland, Thomas looked like any one of a thousand excited, healthy kids.
He's a chunky little boy almost 4 feet tall, with lively dark eyes and a heartwarming grin.
But a closer look reveals cheeks swollen from his illness.
Two mounds protrude from his head above his right ear where a tube implanted under his skin drains fluid from his brain to his stomach.
Radiation treatments have left him with no hair and often wears a hat.
Because he walks very slowly, Thomas traveled around Disneyland in a wheelchair.
But his limited mobility didn't diminish his enthusiasm.
He smiled at the crocodiles and laughed at a tiger snarling from the river bank on the Jungle Cruise boat ride.
"That was fun!" he exclaimed with glee when the boat rushed down a steep slope in Pirates of the Caribbean.
He smiled at Minnie Mouse .
when she patted his arm.
Donald Duck blew him a kiss and shook his head in mock anger at the Mickey Mouse pin on Thomas' Mickey Mouse ears hat.
Waiting to go into the Haunted Mansion, Thomas chatted with his father.
"Dad, remember when I squeezed Mickey Mouse's nose?,, he asked giggling.
"That was funny.
He munched on a hot dog for lunch and a frozen chocolate-covered banana for dessert.
He bought a giant lollipop to take back home.
Thomas said he liked the ghosts in the Haunted Mansion, but "it was scary when that axe almost came down on Paul's car.
[ back to Golden Gater Online May 2, 1986 ]
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