Alissa’s Angels

Jenny Marder

Charlie only had three angels, 9-year-old Alissa Head has 11. Her

angels don’t fight crime, they fight cancer.

The group of 9-year-old girls, who call themselves Alissa’s

Angels, in honor of their friend and classmate, almost

single-handedly organized a fund-raiser Saturday that drew 140

miniature golfers to a course in Fountain Valley to raise money for

the Children’s Hospital of Orange County.

The Huntington Beach girl was diagnosed with spinal cord cancer

four years ago at the age of 6 and will probably never walk again,

said Drew Head, her father. She has had 12 operations, six months of

chemotherapy, one and a half months of radiation and more than 30

MRIs. With tendons and muscles in her back having been torn and cut

in countless surgeries, she now has a metal rod in her spine to keep

her back from collapsing.

Alissa is a strong little girl, with no interest in pity and no

intention of letting her handicaps hold her back from activities

fellow classmates enjoy.

She terrifies teachers, doctors and physical therapists by racing

her chair wildly around corners and down ramps with her arms out like

she’s flying, teachers, friends and mother Lisa Head say.

“We push her down hills all the time,” her friend Katelyn

Massengale said, giggling. “One time, she crashed into a door -- but

on purpose.”

Unable to play miniature golf, Alissa kept herself busy Saturday

maneuvering her purple wheelchair in and out of the crowd, chatting,

handing out prizes and watching Ian, the 8-month-old son of Janeen

Cadiente, one of her fourth-grade teachers at Golden View Elementary

School.

More than $7,000 was raised Saturday, all of which will go to the

neuroscience institute at CHOC.

Alissa, her brother Nicholas and a group of 11 girls spent hours

preparing for the tournament. They wrote letters to more than 100

companies and visited many of them in person to ask for donations.

They wrapped prizes, stuffed gift bags and performed all of the labor

for the event. Later this summer, they will present the money to the

Children’s Hospital.

Alissa’s Angels was founded three years ago just after Alissa was

diagnosed with cancer. A group of Alissa’s girlfriends, who were 6 at

the time, coined the name while forming a team to participate in the

annual “CHOC Walk,” to raise money for the hospital

The group has since raised almost $40,000 through fund-raising

walks, dinners and other events.

“The kids are so supportive and protective of Alissa,” said Holly

King, another fourth-grade teacher. “They make sure she’s included in

everything. And she just joins into everything.”

Alissa’s so independent that teachers say they forget she’s in a

wheelchair. When the other fourth-graders do push-ups in gym class,

she does push-ups in her chair. While others run, she wheels down the

track, and in basketball, she uses her chair to block shots.

Children such as Ian and Alissa’s cousin, 2-year-old Dylan

Wermich, just adore her, her parents said. Dylan is one of her

biggest fans.

“He likes to climb on my wheelchair,” Alissa said with a shy

smile. “He thinks it’s a jungle gym.”

Alissa was also born with a great gift for art. Children in her

class were awestruck by her oil paintings of giraffes and sunsets

when she brought them to class for show and tell, her teacher said.

They asked her, “How long did it take to get so good?” and “How much

do you sell your work for?” King said.

“Her parents are going to need a whole new room for her pictures

soon,” said Shirley Wermich, her grandmother.

Alissa’s last operation was three weeks ago. Because of the metal

rods in her back, Alissa can no longer have MRIs, which means the

cancer has to be detected clinically.

“We have to constantly watch her fine motor skills to see what’s

going on,” her father said. “We watch her hands, her eyes, her

fingers, her body temperature.”

They also scrutinize her moods.

“She has a very high tolerance for pain,” Drew Head said. “If

she’s in a lot of pain, she probably wouldn’t say anything. That’s

not her style.”

Her brother, Nicholas, is also used as a litmus test.

“Nick goes through this as well,” he continued. “We can always

tell when Alissa’s getting better and stronger by how he treats her.

If he starts poking her and wrestling with her, we know she’s doing

better.”

But when Alissa’s sick, her 11-year-old brother becomes quiet and

sits in the corner.

“When she’s healthy, he’s happy,” their father said.

Ultimately, the family uses humor and honesty to cope.

“There are good days, and there are bad days. You just keep

going,” Drew Head said.

For Alissa, who continues going to school even while undergoing

chemotherapy and radiation, it’s her friends who help to pull her

through the hard times.

“The cancer wouldn’t have killed her, but if her friends weren’t

there -- that really would have hurt her,” her mother said.