A wish comes true: San Pablo boy rides BART for Make-A-Wish experience
B.A.R.T. reports:
Austin James made a wish for something hundreds of thousands of people take for granted every day. The 13-year-old boy from San Pablo, who has serious medical conditions and uses a wheelchair, longed to ride a BART train. "This is his joy,' said Virginia D. Thomas, who assists Austin at school, and is known to all as "Ms. Nisey" (pronounced "Neesy," a nickname for her middle name, Denise). "When it's time for P.E. and we go on the basketball court he watches the BART trains go by and he counts the numbers of cars on the trains. He loves trains."
The Make-A-Wish Foundation is well-known for its good works, granting wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions, making dreams come true. The wishes are often the stuff of childhood fantasy: going to Disneyland, meeting a sports idol, swimming with dolphins, riding a dogsled in the Iditarod. Austin's wish was closer to home, and seemingly more ordinary. But the excitement and glee on his face as he boarded the train made it evident this was something very special. He clapped his hands, bounced up and down in his chair, and exclaimed in peals of delight.
