On Friday, the Believe campaign, representing a partnership between Macy’s and Make-A-Wish®, celebrated National Believe Day by granting one Utah local’s very glamorous Wish.
Rylee Bess is a darling 14-year-old fashionista. She loves clothing and makeup. In her words, she loves “to shop and put different things together.”
“She’s always been this way,” said Taya Watson, Rylee’s best friend. “She’s always been the fashionable one. She loves it.”
That is why, when she was referred to the Make-A-Wish® foundation, Rylee Wished to become a model in NYC.
Make-A-Wish® Utah has been coordinating with the branch in NY for a considerable time. To keep the excitement of Rylee’s Wish going, they decided to give her a “Wish tutorial” as it were, according to Kelsey DiTommaso, the marketing manager at Make-A-Wish® Utah. Rylee would go through the whole modeling process here in Utah first: red carpet entrance, expert makeover complete with wardrobe and, of course, a photo shoot with a professional photographer.
In time, she will do it all over again in NYC.
Rylee received VIP treatment as soon as she entered the Macy’s at City Creek at 10 a.m., Friday. A crew of newscasters, reporters and photographers greeted her as she came up the escalator with her family and best friend.
First on the agenda was to write letters to Santa as part of National Believe Day. For every letter written to Santa at a Macy’s on Friday, $2 instead of $1 would be donated to the Make-A-Wish® foundation.
She was guided to the Clinique makeup counter, where Cydnie Tallman, the counter manager of Clinique and Estee Lauder, gave her a master makeover. “It was an amazing opportunity,” said Tallman. Rylee is “a super sweet girl and…it was really nice that Macy’s gets to fulfill these wishes.”
Macy’s has been privileged to participate in Wish-granting in the past. Previous girls’ Wishes were “shopping sprees with a stylist” and becoming a runway model said Shama Dhanecha, vice president store manager for Macy’s at City Creek. “It’s a magically great thing to do.”
Rylee finished her makeover and was led upstairs to her private, VIP suite outfitted in a dressing room. Her deluxe suite included a table with snacks, balloons, streamers and a large rack of clothing picked out by Alicia Richmond, a freelance wardrobe stylist who often consults with Macy’s clients.
“It’s really incredible that Make-A-Wish® would reach out to kids like this,” commented Richmond. “Rylee is so humble and great and very photogenic. I’m blessed to be a part of this.”
Richmond dressed Rylee in a variety of stylish ensembles. Once they had decided on three favorites, they boxed them up and Rylee got to take them home with her.
Rylee was not the only one to participate in the festivities. Her younger sister, Cambree, also got her makeup done and tried some clothes on herself.
The entire Wish experience is “overarching to the whole family” and it “impacts everyone because the challenges these kids face” affect them all, explained DiTommaso.
Rylee was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at the age of four. Understandably, her family was “shocked, devastated and had lots of questions,” said Rylee’s father, Bart Bess.
Cystic fibrosis is a disease that affects the lungs and pancreas. The treatment is constant and restrictive.
Over the years, they solidified their routine and learned to live with their new lives. “Cystic fibrosis is not curable,” said Tasha Bess, Rylee’s mom. “It’s become a normal part of our life. It’s what we do.”
Rylee takes her condition very seriously but she also knows how to have fun. Her friend helps her to be a normal 14-year-old girl. “I’m used to [her condition now],” said Watson. “She’s just my best friend, no matter what.”
“She works super hard and this is really a great reward,” said Bart. “It’s really good for her.”
“To be honest, I know it’s a scary thing,” said Tasha. To parents struggling with their own children’s diagnoses, she advises to “just take it one day at a time. Just love your kids every day because you never know.”
“It’s really amazing to have a moment for these families to escape that day-to-day and make happy memories,” said Brandon Daniels, business and information manager at Make-A-Wish® Utah. “Seeing the Wish in-process is really what everything we do is about.”
Rylee finished off the day with a photo shoot. Professional freelance photographer, Travis Richardson of Travis J Photography took Rylee’s pictures around Macy’s and Studio 11.
“It was really awesome and I’m really grateful,” said Rylee.