By Sylvia Benavidez
What would have been a wonderful, fun overseas learning experience for one Albion teenager turned out to be much more for her and her family. Ann Wade is well known in town for all her public activities, such as her singing and musical talents, winning Walk the Beat, being a student coordinator for her high school band, working at her mother’s store, Yellowbird Chocolate Shop, and actively participating in the French Sister City relationship. Her latter experience has rallied her family around her and the community to support them through a GoFundMe page, Support Ann Wade’s Emergency Expenses. and a fundraiser at Galazio in Albion on August 1.
Over 45 days ago, Wade landed in France for a 10-day visit through Albion’s Sister City program with Noisy-le-Roi/Bailly, an exchange experience that has existed since 2000. She was excited and expressed in a July 10 social media post that an old problem affected her in a new way. “It was an amazing trip that I will forever hold close to my heart. But about two days before we were scheduled to fly home, I was rushed to the ER with a spontaneous pneumothorax on my left lung. (Yes, the same incident that occurred on my right lung in both December ‘23 and February ‘24) I was released from the ER that night with news that I would not be allowed to board a plane for a month. My parents were in France the following morning with much uncertainty of what was to come.”
The news meant she would have to have surgery. In an interview, Ben Wade discussed what had happened to his daughter. He shared, “She suffered a spontaneous pneumothorax – essentially a small hole in the lung that causes air to leak into the chest cavity and prevents the lung from fully inflating.” He shared doctors had no problem with her flying before the trip.
“She was cleared to fly and had no particular risk following her recovery. This time, it was her left lung, and there was no particular way to anticipate that it would happen again other than she fits the risk demographic. There’s no real known cause, hence “spontaneous” pneumothorax,” he said.
Wade shared that the procedure in France was almost identical to that in the United States. Of the experience, she said in her posts, “Less than a week later, I was in the hospital having a full lung surgery. I had two chest tubes, an epidural, a mechanical pleurodesis, and a thoracoscopic blebectomy. The portion of my lung was removed, and X-rays taken throughout the week showed the operation was very successful. I was released from the hospital with lots of nurse visits and lots of X-rays planned for the following weeks.”
The remaining Wade family members in Albion have kept the family’s interests afloat including constant visits to their home and care of their pets. Their son Aiden, who creates The Recorder cartoon strip “The Adventures of Al the Albion Squirrel,” said, “Thankfully, I have had a lot of help from my grandparents from both sides of the family.” His schedule working full time, caring for their home, other family interests, and the time change has made communicating with the family challenging.
He said, “Thankfully, working in the trades, I am up very early in the morning. I usually get up at 5:30 a.m., and that’s give or take lunch time for them, so I have been using that opportunity to catch up with them and kind of help fill them in on any details.” France is six hours ahead of Albion.
Aiden Wade was relieved to find out quickly what was happening to his sister. “The first day was definitely a jolt and shock response and a lot of stress and worry especially related to that, especially not knowing anything at all. But within a day or two, we got the good news that hey, it’s an emergency, yes, but it is under control, care is being given, and everything is going to be OK,” he said. He was grateful for the help at home and comforted that many people in Noisy-le-Roi sheltered his family and that they were eventually given an apartment.
“I think it really speaks to the relationship of the sister cities that they are willing to look out for one another, and maybe it’s just the generosity of the French,” he said.
The experience has changed all of them somehow. “We have more stories to share,” said Ben Wade. “The real relationships to underscore are those with our sister cities of Noisy le Roi and Bailly. We’ve spent the time reuniting with those we’ve hosted or met in the past and making new friends here. The support – rides, lodging, translation, and escorting to appointments, and even some meals – has been amazing. We have a very special connection to this community.”
Wade has seen his daughter grow throughout the medical emergency. “Ann has been incredibly strong throughout this. She speaks more French than we do. But she’s still a minor, and we are grateful that we were able to be here with her throughout the surgery and recovery.”
In a written message, Ben’s mother, Diana Wade, shared, “It’s been quite the journey for sure. The important thing is Ann is now doing great. It’s been a full family team effort, and I’m speechless how the Sister City has proven beyond a doubt how awesome their program is. I can’t say enough about it. They have stepped out on both sides of the ocean to care for each other in time of need. Ben and Jenny could not have navigated through this if not for them.”
“I hope this week is the final countdown to get them home. It’s been hard not being with them through all this, and we will be waiting with all our hugs and feel our arms around them. Love this little town,” said Diana Wade.
The family’s greatest need right now? “To get home,” said Ben Wade. “I think anyone can imagine the cost of taking an unplanned 4-6 week trip to Europe on eight hours’ notice, as well as having to pay upfront for all medical services. We are grateful and humbled by the GoFundMe and personal support that our friends, family, and community have put together.”
Family Friend Cliff Harris organized the fundraising efforts. He shared, “Multiple people came to me and said, obviously, you are going to throw a fundraiser!” He spoke with Ben and got permission, and a team effort was underway. “There was a set of people that said we need to do this, so I met with those people that said we should do this, and we put together an event, and within 24 hours, it was up and running.” At the time of writing this article, out of a goal of $20,000, $9,359 had been raised on the page.
Harris and some individuals who prefer to remain anonymous also arranged a fundraiser at Galazio Restaurant located at 301 N. Clinton St. in Albion. He explained, “Sean, at Galazio, he and his family have been kind enough to allow us to invite people to their restaurant on Thursday, Aug. 1. They will have their normal dinner service from 5-9 p.m., but at about 8 p.m., we will have a band that will begin to play, that is 5 Second Rule, which is a fantastic group. They will play from 8-10 p.m.”
The owners have donated to the GoFundMe account. Harris said someone would be there the whole time to accept donations on behalf of the family. “People from all over the world have donated to the family,” he said.
As of press time, the family’s arrival back home is still up in the air.
