Esan Swan

Never underestimate the power of a little girl, especially when she's got whole pack of preschoolers on her side.

That's the overriding message in the story of 10-year-old Sydney Phoebus and The Gardner School of Brentwood, a preschool that goes way beyond basic child care.

In 2012, Sydney, who has a form of genetic hemolytic anemia, was granted a special wish, thanks to Make-A-Wish Middle Tennessee. When she and her family returned from their Disney Cruise vacation, she brought back more than memories. She returned with a mission: to help others like her.

Thanks to Sydney — and help from The Gardner School — 5-year-old Caroline Thurman and her family recently got the opportunity to spend a week at Disney World, where they met Caroline's favorite movie characters, Elsa and Anna, from Disney's animated film "Frozen."

David Phoebus, Sydney's father, said the idea of paying it forward was all Sydney's.

"When we got back from our trip two years ago, Sydney decided the next time we had a garage sale, she wanted to set up a lemonade stand," David Phoebus said. "We did it a few times and raised a modest amount of money."

Over two years, the family raised about $3,000 through a Facebook page called Friends of Sydney and through a website of the same name, he said.

"It wasn't quite enough to grant a wish on its own, but The Gardner School was also doing a wish campaign and between the two of them were able to combine Sydney's and the school's money to fund a wish for Caroline."

Lillian Turman, development manager at Make-A-Wish Middle Tennessee, said that Sydney is the first child she knows of in the Middle Tennessee chapter, which covers 38 counties, to "wish it forward."

"Sydney is a special girl and has a special heart for Make-A-Wish," Turman said. "It's overwhelming, really, to see a child make something happen for another child."

The Gardner School is the first preschool to participate in Kids for Wish Kids, a program under Make-A-Wish that takes the fundraising into the schools and lets the kids be a part of spearheading the campaign, Turman said.

The school raised more than $2,000 in the summer through donations and fundraisers, she said.

"Through this program, preschoolers can understand philanthropy and accepting others who may not look just like them," Turman said.

On the wish-reveal day, toddlers at The Gardner School broke the news to Caroline in synchronized voices, saying, "You're going to Disney World."

Sydney and her sister, Lily, met Caroline in princess dresses and brought a dress for her, and after each class presented Caroline with a gift of a card or artwork.

"The wish-reveal day was awesome," David Phoebus said. "We watched Caroline's face and it even had me tearing up a little bit. It was all worthwhile."

A ray of sunshine

Dana Thurman, Caroline's mother, said she was overjoyed when she heard that her daughter would get her wish to meet Elsa and Anna from "Frozen."

Caroline has a genetic tumor disorder called neurofibromatosis type I, or NF-I, she said.

"It made us so happy that she was going to have a bright spot in a really tough time for her," said Thurman, who was touched when she heard about what Sydney wanted to do. "It was great that she had experienced so much happiness on her wish that she wanted to help other people. And for a little girl to raise $3,000 is just incredible."

Caroline is a kindergartener at Allendale Elementary School in Spring Hill. She started chemo in December of last year to help stop the tumors from growing so rapidly, her mother said. She will continue the treatment until January.

"Caroline is a darling child who has been through a lot but all of that disappears when you introduce her to something she loves," Make-A-Wish's Turman said.

Caroline's mother says her daughter is doing pretty well but does have a lot of weakness and often gets tired because of the chemo treatments.

"On the last scan, it showed that the tumor was stable and hadn't shrank and had not grown either," she said. "The neurofibromatosis that causes the tumors to grow is not curable right now. It's something she'll live with for the rest of her life."

Caroline also has apraxia, a motor planning speech disorder and a separate illness, which gets worse with the chemo treatments, Thurman said.

With some help translating from her mother, Caroline said that the Tower of Terror was scary, but she liked the roller coasters.

Perhaps that's something to think about as the rest of us go through life's ups and downs.

About Make A Wish

Make-A-Wish grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. With the help of generous donors and nearly 25,000 volunteers, Make-A-Wish grants a wish every 38 minutes and has granted more than 240,000 wishes in the United States since inception. For more information, visit www.middletennessee.wish.org and discover how you can share the power of a wish.

About The Gardner School

Founded in 2004, The Gardner School is an award-winning, academically focused preschool for ages 6 weeks through 5 years old. Headquartered in Brentwood, The Gardner School has schools in Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Virginia and Ohio. For more information about The Gardner School, visit www.thegardnerschool.com.