8-year-old Safyre is not your typical little girl. She is a fighter, and she is a survivor. When she was the age of five, someone intentionally set fire to the stairwell leading to her family’s apartment.. Her father and three young siblings all perished in the fire, but it was her father’s embrace that kept her alive.
Safyre suffered burns to 75% of her body and lost her left foot and right hand. She stayed in hospitals for over 9 months and endured 50 surgeries to graft skin over her burns.
Safyre’s mother signed over custodial rights to the state, but Liz Dolder, who is Terry’s sister and Safyre’s aunt was having none of it, and petitioned the courts to become her legal guardian.
Dolder told TODAY Parents, “Safyre lost everything — her father, her mother, her sister, her brothers, her home, her favorite toy, her favorite outfit — everything that was familiar to her,” Dolder told TODAY Parents. “She even lost the one thing we all take for granted — her reflection. But she wakes every morning with a smile on her face. She is the true definition of hope, faith and love.”
This year, Dolder purchased a Christmas card tree and Safyre’s only Christmas wish is to fill it with Christmas cards. A Facebook post asking for people to send Christmas cards to her has gone viral and Safyre has received many Christmas cards from all over the country so far.
If you would like to add to Safyre’s Christmas wish by sending her a card this year, please send it to the address below. You will no doubt add a smile to her face and joy to her precious heart!
Safyre
P.O. Box 6126
Schenectady NY 12306
