For Thou hast been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat; for the blast of the terrible ones was as a storm against the wall. (Isaiah 25:4)
The youth of the Toronto Jewish community has come out in force to support Olivia Wise, a 16 year old Jewish girl who has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, according to The Times of Israel.
Wise’s video rendition of Katy Perry’s “Roar”, which has gone viral on YouTube, was originally made with the help of some 1,500 university and high school students. They wanted to send Wise their best wishes and let her know how much they admire her.
The well-wishes of the students were not the only inspiring message Wise has received. Katy Perry herself sent Olivia a 30-second message. I love you. A lot of people love you, and that’s why your video got to me. It moved everybody that saw it,” the singer told Wise. “I just wanted to send you some love and some light and tell you that I’m thinking about you. Thank you so much and keep roaring!”
Wise’s cousin Jeff Kassel told ET Canadathat he helped arrange for Los Angeles music producer Jon Levine to come up to Toronto to record Wise at The Orange Lounge Studio. Wise, despite being confined to a wheelchair and having trouble breathing, was not going to miss her chance to make her first studio recording.
“Olivia has always been a joyful, ambitious, positive girl with a great sense of humor who loved to sing, not with the hopes of being a pop star, but for the joy of it,” Kassel said.
“When she was diagnosed with brain cancer just after her 15th birthday in January 2012, she didn’t let the grim prognosis or the wearing treatments change her spirit. She focused on the positive and kept on singing. As her treatments proved to be ineffective against the cancer and her deterioration was becoming apparent, a sense of urgency set in to have her recorded properly and to give her the experience of being in a real recording studio.”
“It feels like it takes a lifetime to make an impact. It’s nice to know that you can make an impact in such a little time,” Kassel said of 16-year-old Wise, who at this point is reportedly slipping in and out of consciousness.
