Rochelle pages through the photo album. She sees the old English bulldog that she never met. Her parents took every photo before Rochelle was born.
One day, she thinks, I’ll have my own bulldog puppy.
As Rochelle goes through treatments to combat her leukemia, she imagines having her own bulldog. She talks to everyone about dogs. Every dog story she hears makes her smile.
Now it’s Christmas. Surely she’ll have her puppy. But times are too tough for her family. Her parents have to spread their resources so each of Rochelle’s five siblings can also have presents.
Rochelle understands. And she waits. And she meets her Make-A-Wish® volunteers. She tells them her wish.
It’s springtime in Michigan. The chapter has its annual gala; Rochelle is the guest of honor. She wonders if her wish will come true tonight. Someone tells her to close her eyes and think of her wish. When she opens them … there’s a bulldog puppy in front of her.
Rochelle tries different names, seeing which one fits. Chihuahua? No. Underdog? No. Tinkerbell? Yes!
“It’s a beautiful name. And you have to pick a beautiful name for her because she’s a beautiful dog,” Rochelle explains. “Tinkerbell, I love you.”
Today, Rochelle and Tinkerbell grow together, best friends, inseparable. Rochelle thinks of her wish every day: It lives on in Tinkerbell … and in the promise of a happy, healthy future.

