School Prom Becomes a Dream Come True for Hospitalized Senior in CT

Newington High School senior, Toni Laites thought she would be spending the night of her Senior Prom in a hospital bed.

According to the Hartford Courant, Toni had another flare-up of ulcerative colitis and her doctors told her she was too sick to leave Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford where she was being given an infusion. Toni was absolutely crushed when she was told she wasn't going to be able to attend her Senior Prom at the Aqua Turf Club in Southington.

But then, Toni's gastroenterologist, Dr. Victoria Grossi got to thinking that maybe, with a little bit of work, she just might be able to make it happen. Without saying a word to Toni, she met with Toni's care team to find out if she could leave the hospital safely for a couple of hours.

Toni's mother, Leslie Ferreira also went to work checking with the school to find out if they would make an exception to the rule that stated, 'If you aren't in school on the day of the prom you wouldn't be allowed to go.' After talking with the school and Toni's doctors it was a GO for Prom!

By 3 p.m. that afternoon, they had their plan in place. As the doctors and nurses from Toni's care team walked into the room where Toni was receiving a blood transfusion and complaining about how a drop or two had smeared on her hand. Dr. Grossi told Toni,

Oh, that's alright, we'll just wash that off before you go to prom tonight.

As the waterworks began, 17-year-old Toni Laites couldn't believe she was being told she was going to her Senior Prom after all. Just after 4 p.m., Toni's mom walked through the door with her prom dress. Her stepsister, Andrea took care of Toni's make-up and Dr. Chelsea Lapus began working on Toni's hair all while the transfusion was taking place.

When all the preparations were in place, Toni walked out into the hallway where a dozen doctors and nurses broke into a rousing round of applause. Toni realized she needed to be back at the hospital by 11 p.m. proving that once in a while a Cinderella moment can happen in real life.