Melissa and Ryan Rapp are the proud parents of three children—Addison, Hunter, and Weston. “We have two in heaven,” Melissa said, “and one here on Earth with us.”
Both Hunter and Addison were born with Beckwith-Wiedemann Syndrome, a genetic condition that carries several complications, including a higher risk for certain cancers and cardiomyopathy. Sadly, Hunter passed away at only two months from a sudden cardiac arrest. Addison, however, lived to be six years old, despite battling cancer since age three.
“Addison did eight months of chemotherapy and beat it,” Melissa said. “Then cancer came back in June of 2020 and was very aggressive.” Addison’s health care team tried everything, from radiation and chemotherapy to removing her kidney. Even still, the cancer metastasized and spread throughout her little body. Addison passed away on September 19th, 2021.
The incomprehensible tragedy of losing a child, let alone two children, would leave any family reeling, searching for any semblance of joy or hope. Of course, Melissa felt all the sadness of a grieving mother, yet she and her family found plenty of joy, too. Because in Addison’s short time on this earth, she brought so much joy to everyone around her.
“Addison was always smiling, always happy and joyful and just a little light,” Melissa said. Even though Addison has been gone for 3 ½ years now, her memory very much lives on. One way the Rapp family celebrates her legacy is through #SmilesfromAddison.
“#SmilesfromAddison is something that we started after she passed away,” Melissa said. “We started doing random acts of kindness on her birthday every year.” Participants are encouraged to perform an act of kindness and wear bracelets with Addison’s Bible verse, all in honor of her joyful spirit. For Melissa, that means delivering care packages to kids who practically live in the hospital during treatments.
“The kids’ care packages have things like bubbles, Play-Doh, stickers, and fidget toys,” Melissa said. “Just little things to keep kids entertained in the hospital. This year, we donated 110 care packages to Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital.” Addison’s birthday also falls close to Mother’s Day. Melissa knows what it’s like for many of those moms sitting with their child day after day, exhausted both emotionally and physically. Sometimes, a little gift goes a long way.
“If they’re stuck at the hospital with their kiddo on Mother’s Day,” Melissa said, “I give moms care packages that include things like slippers, chap stick, face masks, hand lotion, a journal, and a pen.” Melissa and her mother have also found another way to honor Addison’s memory. During Addison’s treatments, she required a lot of blood and platelet transfusions. Watching Addison rely on transfusions firsthand inspired Melissa to pay it forward—or bleed it forward.
“It just became like one of those, okay, we are doing this,” Melissa said. “We regularly donate every eight weeks. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts.” Melissa encourages everyone, even if needles make you squeamish, to donate blood. “It’s a tiny little poke, and then it’s over,” she said. “You can save how many lives by just taking an hour out of your day.”
People need people, make a difference in someone’s life by donating blood.
We must rely on each other for the gift of blood, and patients in your community rely on the generosity of Versiti’s blood donors to help. Please consider scheduling an appointment to donate. If this is your first time, donating blood is quick, easy and relatively painless. And, it is a great way to give back and help patients in your community.