NORTH ROYALTON, Ohio — On Sunday, a group of volunteers at local non-profit Special Spaces Cleveland did a total room makeover for a little girl in North Royalton who is battling several serious health conditions.
The room gives her a place to find peace and comfort in between doctor’s appointments and other treatments. It will have new paint and trim, a dollhouse, bookshelves, and a table just for drawing. The room is just as bold and bright as 2-year-old Mae Jacobson’s personality.
“She’s pure love. She emanates nothing but that, emanates happiness and everybody falls in love with her wherever she goes,” Mae’s mom Amber Jacobson said.
Amber Jacobson says that brightness never dims, even though the toddler is dealing with more than most people could ever imagine.
“She has something called Williams syndrome. It is a rare genetic and sporadic syndrome. She’s one of 30,000 in the U.S. She has heart issues, kidney issues, calcium issues, global development and also vision issues and they also have developmental delays as well,” Amber said.
Now, the non-profit only provides room makeovers for children with cancer but previously, children with other life-threatening illnesses like Mae qualified as well—though they were changed after Mae’s makeover was already underway.
“These kids spend so much time being dragged to doctors appointments, tests, treatments, therapies, time in the hospital, that its nice to give them a space where they can kind of escape that whole aspect of their life, just somewhere really fun and special for them,” said Ashley Rainey, the associate director of Special Spaces Cleveland.
Volunteers spent the last two days working on the room, putting up new wallpaper, assembling matching beds for Mae and her sister Emma and sticking to the theme Amber gave them—bright and colorful.
The finished product put a smile on everyone’s faces, but none brighter than Mae’s.
“This was just such a blessing, such a blessing,” Amber said.
If you or someone you know meets the new qualifications for a room makeover, you can find more information on the Special Spaces Cleveland Facebook page.
