Princess Program Foundation Creates Fairytale Experiences for Children with Terminal Illness
By Antonia Raney | WeINSPIRE Journalist
AUSTIN, Texas — Like most fairy tales, this one begins with a princess.
Alyssa Banks was an 18-years-old nursing student volunteering at a camp for terminally ill children in 2017. While playing mini-golf with another little princess, the girl suddenly said something rather upsetting— she would never go to Disney. Upon hearing those words, Banks’s heart shattered. Banks couldn’t get those words out of her head throughout the day. It wasn’t until the night, getting ready for a talent show and seeing the costuming when she got an idea.
“And I remember seeing all the costumes in the talent showroom, and I was like, ‘what if we just dressed up in costume and went to visit kids in hospitals, so we could bring Disney to them?’” Banks said.
Photo Courtesy of Alyssa Banks.
Banks soon put her plan in action, starting the Princess Program as a club at Anna Maria College in Paxton, Massachusetts. Initially, they would adorn costumes resembling the Disney Princesses and visit local hospitals around Boston, brightening the day for children facing terminal illnesses. Even in those earlier days dressed as Belle, a female protagonist of Disney's 1991 animated feature film, Beauty and the Beast, Banks could see how much this meant to the children. Even in those earlier days when Banks would dress up as Belle from Disney’s animated film “Beauty and the Beast”, she could see how much this meant to the children.
“But … we walked into Boston Children's and the kids that came running over to me, and there was this one little girl that put her arms around me, and she was like, ‘Belle, this is the first time I've ever met you. I've watched all your movies!’” Banks recalled, smiling. “And getting to know that you get to represent that to them is everything. Like, you're their hero. It's incredible!”
After running the club for two years, Banks felt that this could be more than an extracurricular activity. So, Banks withdrew from school, focusing on turning the club into an official 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, which became approved in just a month. Thus, the organization became the Princess Program Foundation, bringing whimsical fun into children’s lives.
Photo Courtesy of Alyssa Banks.
With Banks now as the Chief Executive Officer and a nursing student again, character volunteers from Texas to Canada bring the magic right to the children. Before the pandemic hit, home and hospital visits were frequent until Banks decided to utilize Zoom more after the suggestion from a mother.
“While everything like I can't say enough about how much I miss in person, but also, we would have never been able to reach kids in different countries and states before like we were a local non-profit,” Banks said.
A character volunteer does take some prepping to transform into princesses, dressing in their costume and make-up. After, they set up their themed backdrop for Zoom before visiting kids, sometimes live on TikTok. Character volunteers’ activities with children range from singing, playing with Barbies to reading a story. No matter what, however, what they do is all dependent on the child.
Photo Courtesy of Alyssa Banks.
Moreover, the connections the non-profit makes aren’t just solely between children and character volunteers. Throughout the non-profit’s existence, they have been keeping in touch with recurring families who use their services, such as “OG families,” those who have been with the non-profit since the start, as Banks states. Often, Banks will reach out to these families on social media, whether to check-in or offer support if they are having a hard time seeing their child go in for procedures, for instance.
Jocelyn was one little girl from an OG family that meant the world to Banks and her team, leaving a lasting impact. Starting in September 2020, the Princess Program Foundation visited the sweet young girl over Zoom. Over time, the bond between the non-profit and Jocelyn’s family grew close, as Banks kept up with the family through text and over social media. When Jocelyn’s family flew down from Utah to Boston to get her treatment, Banks and her team planned a day full of fun and magic for the little girl at Boston Public Garden— a memory Banks cherishes to this very day.
Jocelyn with character volunteer dressed as Ariel from “The Little Mermaid.” Photo Courtesy of Alyssa Banks.
“The videos I have from that day are just absolutely incredible, and she, unfortunately, passed away a few months later, and it has completely changed the way I approach everything with the families,” Banks said. “I just thought for some reason that this child was going to be different. And I think that's what we always want to believe because we don't believe that there is something that horrible that can take kids away that's young. So her passing really affected all of us, our volunteers, the characters, everything.”
In September, Jocelyn would end up sadly passing from ATRT Brain Cancer— fast-growing tumors that represent between 1% to 2% of all childhood brain tumors. Feeling the effects of Jocelyn’s death, Banks, and her team flew down to Utah for Jocelyn’s service, showing support this time by bringing magic to Jocelyn’s twin siblings. Since then, the Princess Program Foundation has been in touch with the family over Zoom and many families similar, whether it’s giving themed care packages, designing a doll specifically in a child’s image, or getting a highly-requested princess to visit a child.
Taking a look at the Princess Program Foundation’s TikTok, one sees all sorts of videos featuring the character volunteers and segments of their visits via Zoom. But, there’s also another component of the non-profit that’s shown, advocating for the importance of Childhood Cancer Awareness.
“It's so important because only 4% of the government budget is given to childhood cancer, and these kids are worth so much more than 4% and seeing that and learning that from these families and all the treatments and the day to day stuff that they go through like it's not talked about enough. There's not enough awareness,” Banks expressed. “So that's why our TikTok has kind of become an advocating platform, so we can educate the public that it needs to be done.”
If there is anything Banks wants others to get from her story and non-profit, it took a lot of work to create something this big, but “anyone can do this.”
“I feel like the biggest thing is to tell people to chase their dreams and that no dream is monotonous or small and that you can literally do anything you set your mind to,” Bank said. “I always say it's like bigger than me, and I don't get nervous when I go to do Princess Program things because it's not about me. It's about these kids.”
To support the Princess Program Foundation, donate here. Schedule a visit here if you would like to book a character for your child(ren). More information about the Princess Program Foundation can also be found on their TikTok, Instagram, and website.
