Posted: 4/12/05

Wishes for Cole and a whole lot more

by Susan M.A. Larson
Staff writer

Cole Cosky’s wishes were granted beyond his wildest dreams.

Cole, 10, Dayton, a fourth grader at Otsego Elementary, was one of the first three children to have their wish granted by Wishes and More. Wishes and More is a new wish-granting organization for children from birth to 19 years enduring a terminal or life-threatening illness.

The son of Shari and Todd Cosky, Cole was 7 when he was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF). Even when Cole was an infant, his mother knew all was not well. He never slept through the night, he was constantly hungry and suffered frequent stomach pains. He was treated for such things as adenoids, ear problems and so forth, but nothing seemed to help. Never giving up her quest for a diagnosis, Shari demanded that he be checked for allergies. As fate would have it, the allergist was a former cystic fibrosis specialist. He immediately referred Cole to a CF clinic at the University of Minnesota for a sweat test, which confirmed the diagnosis of CF.

“I thought it was the end of the world,” Shari admitted.

CF, as defined by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, is caused by a defective gene that causes the body to produce an abnormally thick, sticky mucus that clogs the lungs. These thick secretions also obstruct the pancreas and prevent digestive enzymes from reaching the intestines to help break down and absorb food.

Cole and his parents make regular visits to the university for various tests. Last October he underwent surgery to place a feeding tube to provide him with extra nutrients to build up his weight. More than 3,000 calories are pumped through the tube each evening while he sleeps and doctors want him to consume another 3,000 calories during the day. He also has two Bolus feedings (receiving nutrients via a syringe attached to his feeding tube) during the day at school. Cole uses an airway clearing system (a vest hooked up to a machine that loosens the mucus from his lungs) at least twice a day. He knows the treatments are vital, plus they do bring him relief and he feels thankful for his vest.

The decision to have the feeding tube inserted did not come easy for Todd and Shari, and they discussed it with family members beforehand. When the decision was made, Shari expressed her feelings of sadness to family and friends via e-mail. Her sister forwarded that correspondence to Wishes and More.

“I cried when I heard that,” Shari recalled.

Cole’s wish was for a shopping spree and to have dinner at Red Lobster, his favorite restaurant (his alternate wish was to have his family chosen for the show, “Extreme Home Makeover”).

The wish night (March 16) started with a limousine picking up Cole, his parents and sister Toni, to transport them to Red Lobster. There, the red carpet was literally rolled out to welcome the Coskys, and they were met by numerous friends and family. Wishes and More then presented Cole with the first $500 of his $2,500 shopping spree. Once a week for five weeks, Cole will receive a $500 credit card delivered directly to his home, to be used to buy whatever he wants.

The cards are not just delivered to Cole’s home, they arrive in style. One week a motorcycle club delivered the card and gave Cole a motorcycle ride. Another delivery came with Minnesota Twins tickets. And since the money is delivered in increments, “Cole’s wish keeps going,” Shari noted.

Some of Cole’s first purchases include a pet Whiting’s tree frog, a paint ball gun and a Game Boy Advance. He loves to fish and has purchased numerous lures as well. His goal, said Shari, is to catch a muskie.

Future purchases include “paint balls, a bow and arrow, some things like that,” Cole said, adding that he’d like to make another visit to Red Lobster.

His mother explained that during his wish night at Red Lobster, he was allowed to hold one of the live lobsters, declaring that there was “no way” he could ever kill one of them.

Along with his wish, Cole received a $1,000 Scholarship of Hope (unique to Wishes and More) to be used to further his education after high school.

“I just cannot believe how wonderful (Wishes and More) have been,” Shari emphasized.

For more information about Wishes and More, go to www.wishesandmore.org.

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