Mario Boosts Dylan’s Happiness on Tough Days

Program Impact

·Mar 13th, 2026

Dylan Hughes_Young — Young Dylan at home

For the Love of Mario

One night when Dylan was four years old, he snuck out of bed only to find his mom, Nicole, playing an old school Super Mario Bros™ video game.

That encounter marked the beginning of Dylan’s love for all things Mario.

As Dylan grew, he continued to try different games with Mario and beat them all. He loves completing each quest and advancing to the next level.

Dylan loves Mario so much that he illustrated a booklet of different generations of games. He even taught himself to write Japanese to stay true to the original language!

Dylan-s Mario Booklet 6x4 — A page from Dylan's booklet of different generations of Mario games.

Currently, his goal is to collect all the Nintendo gaming systems, especially the retro ones, which he thinks are the coolest.

“He’s very much an old soul,” Nicole shares. “That is just him. He loves everything retro.”

Nintendo games have been a core part of Dylan’s family life too. Dylan’s dad is a big gamer, and they have a game room where they play Mario Party, Mario Kart and Super Mario Bros. series all together.

“It’s definitely a family thing,” says Nicole.

A Burst of Happiness

Dylan’s love for Mario has also been central to getting through tough days in the hospital. Born with a rare heart condition called hypoplastic left heart syndrome, Dylan visits the hospital frequently.

Typically, Dylan faces each visit with remarkable bravery. When he once needed an IV, the staff offered him sedation because of how often he was in the hospital.

Dylan shook his head. “‘No, thank you,” he said. “I'm brave. I don't need that ... You can just do the IV and you can do it now. I’m fine.”

This is usually how Dylan handles hospital visits. But one week, after appointment after appointment, he was simply worn out. As they walked towards the hospital, his shoulders slumped and his steps slowed.

“I don’t want to go in for this ultrasound,” Dylan said quietly to Nicole.

Nicole remembers it clearly:

“He was completely shut down. I felt like I was dragging him through the hallway. He wouldn’t talk to me, hanging his head down. He was mad. He didn’t want to go in and do anything.”

Dylan Hughes Gaming Station 5x7 — Dylan smiling while playing Mario video games at the hospital.

As Dylan finally stepped inside the hospital, something caught his eye – a Starlight Gaming Station. His eyes widened, and a big smile spread across his face. Suddenly, he was off, running toward it, bouncing from one game with Mario to the next.

“It completely flipped a switch,” Nicole reminisces. “It was like my Dylan came back. He was happy and playful.”

That burst of happiness gave Dylan the boost he needed to get through his ultrasound. Nicole shares, “then he had had a liver scan for an hour and a half, but he was so happy during it ... It kind of made him a kid again, you know?”

Getting to play on the gaming station in the hospital made Dylan’s day. After that, he didn’t want to leave the hospital. “He kept asking, ‘Can we just stay and play with this?’” Nicole shares. He was just so happy.”