By Audrey Cooney The Patriot Ledger From Wicked Local.com

HINGHAM — When Tony Achille was diagnosed with hodgkin’s lymphoma at the age of 15, his and his family’s lives were suddenly centered around hospital visits, test and treatments.

“You start to become numb,” said his mother, Kelly Achille.

As she related, her son’s treatments took both a physical and mental toll on him. The usually fit, athletic boy, an avid hockey player, lost much of his strength. His appetite changed drastically, and he was often frustrated and deeply unhappy.

The one thing that kept him positive, she said, was the possibility of getting a wish granted by Make-A-Wish Massachusetts and Rhode Island, which provides once-in-a-lifetime experiences for children facing serious illnesses.

“For Tony, Make-A-Wish was his guiding light through his treatment,” said Achille, saying they would spend hours fantasizing about what they would do. “He used it as a finish line and a reward as his body went through these treatments.”

Achille said she was certain Tony would choose to meet his hockey hero, Alexander Ovechkin. Instead, he decided he wanted his wish to be something for his whole family— his mom, his father Bob, and his brothers Ryan and Breece, ages 18 and 10. After his treatments were over, he wanted to go on a Caribbean cruise with his family.

“It just sort of reflected back on his personality,” Achille said. “It’s not always about him, it’s about everybody else.”

Through Make-A-Wish Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Tony and his family were able to go on a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Western Caribbean.

“They organized everything from top to bottom,” said his mother. “It was just so over-the-top, it was amazing.”

On the cruise ship, the family got behind-the-scene tours of the theatres and met the ship’s captain, who let Tony touch the steering wheel. They learned indoor rock climbing, surfed and snorkeled.

“It was so so nice and so relaxing and just a really great way to end a really long year,” said Achille.

Now 16, Tony is working on physically recovering from the past year. He has follow-up appointments every three months, but seems to be in the clear, his mother said.

Achille said she and her family will always be grateful for Make-A-Wish Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

“We need more of that in this world,” she said. “We need to make more happiness, more compassion, more putting good things into bad situations.”

For more on this story go to: http://www.wickedlocal.com/news/20180509/make-a-wish-gives-hingham-teen-caribbean-adventure

IMAGE: Make -A- Wish logo