Lisa Ferlita smiled a huge smile as she unraveled the curls in her daughter’s hair.
“You look like Moana!” she said.
Six-year-old Luci Ferlita stared straight ahead in her Disney-themed Halloween costume. Last year she was Cinderella. That followed years as Sophia the First and Wonder Woman.
No costume is too difficult to recreate for their princess.
“I never really thought of anything other than she’s going to be here,” said Lisa. “I never let that thought cross my mind.”
Luci was born with a very rare form of Muscular Dystrophy called EMARDD. She is the only person in the United States with the diagnosis and one of just 20 people in the world. That has made life more challenging for the Ferlitas.
“We’re going to love her and give her the best life possible,” said Lisa.
That’s what makes Halloween so special. It’s a day to dress up and give Luci an extraordinary experience.
“I’m kind of the hero of Halloween,” said her grandfather, John Kelly Jr., who created a Cinderella carriage out of hula hoops last Halloween and built, along with Luci’s uncle, Moana’s iconic boat from PVC pipe and fabric. “This was easier than the chariot.”
Luci got to parade the family creation through the halls of St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital on Wednesday during the children’s parade. Hospital staff from every department handed out candy and praised the kid’s costume choices.
The moment was exactly what Lisa wanted for her daughter.
“I feel like every year is trying to one-up the last year.”
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