Gymnastics Blog: Krista Mae's Birthday!
October 03, 2014 11:52 AM | General
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The Mountaineers surprised Krista Mae with a birthday celebration last week!
WVU Athletic Communications Photo
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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Cary Gym was rocking last week, as Krista Mae Peraldo visited on September 25 to celebrate her 10th birthday with her West Virginia University gymnastics teammates.
Krista Mae joined the Mountaineer program one-year ago through Team IMPACT, a Boston-based non-profit organization that has set out to improve the quality of life for children facing life-threating illnesses by partnering them with college athletic teams.
Diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on March 31, 2013, Krista Mae has been a natural fit with the Mountaineers, joining the team at Cary Gym when she travels to Morgantown for hospital visits and cheering the team on at home meets at the WVU Coliseum.
“I just love when Krista Mae comes to practice,” said senior Beth Deal. “Each time she’s in, I try to stay close to her mom (Stephanie Peraldo). She’s always so happy, too, because we make Krista happy and help her forget that she’s sick. It’s honestly the highlight of our week when she’s in the gym.”
Krista Mae’s visit last week was extra special because the Mountaineers got to be a part of her birthday celebration.
“It was an awesome party,” junior Melissa Idell enthused. “The best part was seeing Krista’s face when she walked into the locker room and saw the decorations and presents we bought her. We sang ‘Happy Birthday,’ and she opened her gifts and smiled with each package. It was really awesome seeing how happy she was with the team.”
Among the many gifts the Mountaineers surprised Krista Mae with were a Ninja Turtles coloring book, scrapbook supplies, a sparkly notebook and bags of candy. Everyone enjoyed cupcakes, too.
“We love making Krista happy,” Deal continued. “Every time she joins us in the gym, it puts our lives in perspective and reminds us all how grateful we should be for our health. Krista Mae is an inspiration for the Mountaineers.”
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