The Make-A-Wish Foundation helped a West Chester teenager regain her voice after battling cancer and fulfill her lifelong dream, writes Anita Oh for CBS Philly.

Maria Colón was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma when she was 14 years old. The teenager who loved to sing suddenly found herself losing her voice after chemotherapy.

“When everything started happening, I lost my voice and I was absolutely devastated,” said Colón. “This isn’t something I can just be like, ‘Okay, I’ll just sound raspy for the rest of my life.’ This is my life.”

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Miraculously, she found her voice after the treatment was complete. She channeled her experience into creating a song called “Recover.”

Thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, she was able to record her song and music video at Studio Breed in Philadelphia, where artists like The Roots, Erykah Badu, and Lauryn Hill have recorded.

“We can’t change the course of a child’s illness or prevent one from happening,” said Molly Gatto, Vice President of Mission Delivery with Make-A-Wish. Instead, “we provide an experience that gives them hope. It empowers them to believe in themselves and the future in front of them.”

Read more about Maria Colón from CBS Philly here.

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