Keri and Ryan Topperwien with Moses Mackay from Sol3 Mio. Photo / Supplied
Keri and Ryan Topperwien with Moses Mackay from Sol3 Mio. Photo / Supplied
For the past seven years, the days surrounding June 15 have been tough for Keri and Ryan Topperwien.
This year was no exception but for a text message giving the Whakatāne couple a glimmer of excitement for the months ahead.
On June 15, 2012, the Topperwiens' oldest child, Chace, losthis battle against the acute myeloid leukaemia he had been diagnosed with just before his 2nd birthday. He was 3 years old when he died.
In the months following their loss and in the memory of Chace and his valiant fight, the Topperwiens set up the Dream Chaser Foundation using funds donated from the community.
The foundation has regularly contributed to families, organisations and institutions involved with child cancer. It also promotes awareness of bone marrow donation, something that could have made a difference with Chace, had a donor match been possible.
"The days before and after June 15 are days of reflection, often replaying the closing days as our boy prepared for his final weeks on earth, sometimes despair and always heartache," Keri Topperwien said.
Ryan and Keri Topperwien at the TSB Bank People's Choice Awards in 2015. Photo / File
"It's never an easy time."
But Keri's heart is a little less heavy with the latest news.
The Dream Chaser Foundation has a number of ambassadors including Taika Waititi, Sol3 Mio and Pippa Wetzell.
This week the Topperwiens learned Moses Mackay from Sol3 Mio was entering Celebrity Treasure Island and had chosen the Dream Chaser Foundation as his charity.
"I got the news via one of our Dream Chaser Guardians [supporters who donate $1 a week to the foundation] who heard the announcement on The Hits," Topperwien said.
"I was having a particularly bad morning stuck in a time trap of this day seven years ago, and then my phone dinged in the middle of a teary session.
Kiwi film maker Taika Waititi with Dream Chaser founders Keri Topperwien and Ryan Topperwien. Photo / File
"It was an amazingly timed message to lift my spirits sky high."
The next day the Topperwiens headed to Auckland to meet with MacKay before his flight to Fiji where the programme will be filmed and, after a crazy, mad dash to a print shop, had a blue Dream Chaser T-shirt ready to hand over.
Since its inception, the Dream Chaser Foundation logo of a shining sun with sunglasses has always been printed on to a yellow background as "lello" was Chace's favourite colour.
"When we spoke to Moses he was slightly apologetic as his Celebrity Treasure Island team colour is blue," Ryan Topperwien said. "But I don't think Chace will mind too much. He'd be saying blue is an alright colour."
