Encompass Winning Designer: Myron 

Age: 16 years old
Hometown: Des Plaines, IL
Medical Condition: Diabetes
Design Name: Melody of the Sky

Myron was diagnosed with diabetes when he was 9 years old. He remembers how his life underwent many changes after the diagnosis -- his days were suddenly tasked with constantly monitoring his sugar and diet. It was also after his diagnosis that his family became a part of Starlight.

“My experience with Starlight has been positive, and it makes me appreciate that organizations like this exist” he says. “My family shares nice times together when we attend Starlight events.”

Thanks to Starlight’s Great Escapes family activities program, Myron has attended bowling parties and trips to the circus, however, his favorite event was a dinner cruise off Chicago’s Navy Pier.

“My family sat there on the boat sharing a meal while we watched the sun set in the horizon. It is a great memory.”

Myron recreates this memory in his art work, ‘Melody in the Sky.’ His design is a series of suns and moons blowing out rainbows and music notes against a sky changing from day to night.

“I wanted to create a soothing piece of art because that is what kids need most in a hospital -– visuals to help them relax,” says Myron. “Sitting in a hospital bed with suns and moons to look at would have certainly brought me some relief during my own hospital experiences as a child. It felt cool when I learned I had won. My only hope was to create something that would help brighten a child’s day — and night.”

Myron is an aspiring artist who constantly draws in sketchbooks. Interestingly, he was caught working on ‘Melody in the Sky’ while he was at school and got in trouble with his teacher. When he explained it was for hospitalized kids, she let him off the hook.