Back in October, the-then US Champion Sheamus granted a wish for a 7-year-old boy named Ayden Bell. Ayden was diagnosed with brain cancer – a tumor that was wrapped around his brain stem – in 2013, and wanted nothing more than to meet his favourite wrestler.
At the time of the visit Ayden had fire red hair, just like his hero. In fact, Sheamus spiked it for Ayden and gave him several autographed pieces of memorabila, including elbow pads, a t-shirt, and program filled with WWE Superstars.
“It was nice to kinda sorta let your guard down a little bit. It was really, really nice,” said Aiden’s father Ronald. His mother, Crystal added, “No hospitals, doctors or blood draws.”
Sheamus wrestled and defeated Bo Dallas that night. Ayden was excited about the win, but what happened afterward made him even happier. The champ picked up the boy and celebrated ringside.
I love wrestling for a great many reasons, but seeing the pure love these kids have for wrestlers we begrudgingly watch on television each week is incredible. Watch the full video below, and no, you will not be okay, and yes, you should probably get some Kleenex first:
[protected-iframe id=”9656d61127a41ed43a1a8909a417f4f8-60970621-20122658″ info=”https://player.bimvid.com/v2/vps/wsil/0a479283acee9e2aac7f5d31084982aa06e2b9e7/ref=aHR0cDovL3d3dy53c2lsdHYuY29tL25ld3MvbG9jYWwvV2VzdC1GcmFua2ZvcnQtQm95cy1XV0UtV2lzaC1Db21lcy1UcnVlLTI4Njc2NzQzMS5odG1s” ]
Though the visit took place in October, WSIL TV recently aired the report as Ayden is still undergoing expensive treatments. He’s lost his hair due to repeated chemotherapy sessions, but has also developed impaired vision and hearing loss. A GoFundMe account has been set up for Ayden here.
