It's been a hard few months for one little girl fighting cancer, but on Saturday she got the ultimate Christmas gift.
Hailey Steward met her hero, Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots.
The 8-year-old from Bethel, Maine, is fighting B-cell leukemia for the second time. She's been undergoing chemotherapy treatments and one thing that keeps her spirits up is Tom Brady.
The Facebook page Hailey's Journey Our Journey is filled with posts about Brady. Many friends were trying to figure out a way for the little girl to meet Brady. Word got to Brady, and perhaps Santa helped out because it was just in time for Christmas.
"Hi Hailey, Merry Christmas. It's Tom Brady. I heard you have a special Christmas wish that you wanted this year and I got one too. I was hoping you'd be willing to come down here this Saturday before we leave for New York and I get a chance to meet you," said Tom Brady in a video shared on Hailey's Facebook page.
The family shared photos of the visit on Facebook. Hailey is decked out, head to toe, in Patriots gear, posing with Tom Brady and the joy on her face is undeniable.
Her father, John Steward, updated the Facebook page, explaining how the day went.
"As a Dad this was truly one of the most amazing days of my life to see my girl get her wish. My little Hailey is so strong and to see someone like Tom Brady recognize her strength and determination to beat this again is awesome," he wrote.
He went on to thank everyone who helped get the word out about Hailey wanting to meet Brady. He also thanked Tom Brady for his kindness.
"I can also say Tom Brady is an amazing man and to reach out to us and meet us today was way more than we expected. He is a true Patriot and all Patriot fans should be proud. I know I will forever be," he wrote.
Hailey's fight with cancer isn't over yet. But she'll forever have the memory of meeting the man whose perseverance on the field she finds so inspiring.
To learn more about about Hailey's journey, visit the Facebook page or the GoFundMe page.
