CENTERVILLE—Gavin was in for a big surprise when he walked into the Centerville Young Powersports recently. The showroom was decorated with balloons and family and friends lined the store clapping and cheering as he passed by. The 17-year-old was ushered to a 2024 Suzuki Kingquad ATV and was loaded up with a helmet, gloves, goggles, riding boots and off-road apparel. It was all part of a partnership between Young Caring for Our Young Foundation and Make-A-Wish Utah to grant Gavin, who has been battling cancer, his wish.

 “It really brightened our life,” said Gavin’s mother Diana. “We were at Primary Children’s and Gavin was going through a chemo cycle. Our social worker said he would be eligible for Make-A-Wish. We started the journey a couple of years ago.”

Diana said they have some land in Duchesne. “We love camping and nature. Our dream is to build a small cabin where we can make family memories. There are thousands of trails to explore – I’m excited for him.”

It’s an exciting day, said Gavin. “I went to bed early so that I could get up faster. This is something I looked forward to all during my recovery in the harder times when I didn’t know the outcome.”

Gavin said the dunes will be the first trail he goes on. “We’re going to go tomorrow or the next day.”

Lynda Barrus is a Wish Granter for Make-A-Wish and worked with Gavin and his family. “We get an email when kiddos come into the building. They post those and we take a look and get to choose who we’ll work with. I have a 17-year-old son. I saw Gavin and I like to work with older kids. He had similarities to my son so I was inclined to work with him.”

Barrus said then they reached out to the parents. “We welcome them to the process. It starts with the declaration and the child gets to choose their top three wishes. They can choose to go somewhere, to be somebody like a police officer or to meet somebody. Some kids will wish for a shopping spree to give to the other kids who were in treatment with them.”

Gavin changed his mind a few times, she said. “We try to make sure the child receiving the wish is really getting what they want.”

His family has been amazing to work with, said Barrus. “They have a huge heart and they’re so caring and loving. Gavin was beyond surprised. It wasn’t what he expected. It’s an amazing experience to be able to witness that. Everyone rallied around him. His family was so supportive. His brothers were there through the whole process.”

“We’re incredibly excited to be a part of this effort,” said Jeramie Young, director of Young Powersports. “Each person in this dealership knows how much riding a machine like this can take all of your stresses away and get you to focus on the moment that you’re in. Our team’s grateful for this opportunity to be involved with the Make-A-Wish program, and help brighten the lives of children overcoming challenges.”

“I think him looking forward to something good, him looking forward to an exciting time and

feeling optimistic about getting better and getting back to the land and enjoying [the] outdoors

gave him a reason to keep fighting and keep going,” said Diana.

“I’ve had so many bad experiences with cancer,” said Gavin. “It’s nicer to be sitting on a machine than in a hospital bed.”