HEROES COLLIDE
TERMINALLY ill Corio teen Bryce McKiernan will meet his long-time hero John Cena when the wrestling legend visits Australia this weekend.
The world-famous American — who has 43 million likes on Facebook and a resume which also includes rapper, movie star and TV host — was touched by Bryce’s story, which first appeared in the
Geelong Advertiser in February, and has agreed to grant his wish.
TERMINALLY ill Corio teen Bryce McKiernan will meet long-time hero John Cena when the pro wrestling legend visits Australia at the weekend.
The American — who has 43 million likes on Facebook and a resume that also includes rapper, movie star and TV host — was touched by Bryce’s story, which first appeared in the Geelong Advertiser in February, and has agreed to grant his wish to meet.
The cheeky Nelson Park student with an infectious smile is never seen without a wrestling figurine in hand.
The plastic toys of his physi- cally fit and mentally tough idols have inspired resilience, and offered a welcome distraction, through his life-long battle with kabuki syndrome.
His mum, Stacey McKiernan, was reduced to tears when she learned her son — who is receiving palliative care — would be meeting Cena.
“I can’t say I ever believed it would really happen and I am so excited for Bryce and for our whole family, this is just massive to see the smile on his face again,” Ms McKiernan said.
“Most little kids carry around a teddy bear, Bryce carried a wrestler. He sleeps with it, he has it in his hand all day, everyday.”
The 40-year-old 16-time Pro-Wrestling Champion is bringing his An Evening with John Cena event to the Melbourne Convention Centre on Saturday as part of a threestop Australian tour.
Bryce and his family have been given VIP tickets to the show, presented by Fast Track Events and hosted by Karl Stefanovic, and will have a private meet and greet with the star.
Bryce’s love of wrestling was fostered by time spent sitting and watching competitions with his dad and brother. He has been to the WWE live shows in Australia the past two years and was fortunate enough to see Cena wrestle on one occasion.
With his health deterior- ating, the McKiernans are increasingly homebound.
“His kidneys aren’t doing so great, his heart failure is showing a lot more,” Ms McKiernan said. “He could be on and off oxygen two or three times a day, some days he doesn’t need it at all . . . sometimes 20 hours in the day he is asleep other days not as much.”
Bryce first captured Geelong’s heart with his story, his smile and his wish for the party of a lifetime complete with a star-studded guest list.
Thanks to the generosity of the community he had a memorable day in February, arriving via stretch limousine with police escort to a room with 200 friendly faces including MasterChef stars George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan, and Cats champions Paul Chapman and Joel Selwood.
He has had a Skype session with the Wiggles, met Jamie Oliver and had lunch with Manu Feildel, from My Kitchen Rules.
He’s also had a starring role in Geelong Football Club’s team photo and was the first palliative patient to have his garden transformed by Barwon Health’s new “backyard blitz” program.
A GoFundMe account has been created to help his family in giving him a fitting send off when the time comes. To donate visit gofundme.com/brycesstarshinesbright.