Spice Girls bring smiles to county teen

WESTVILLE - Last week, 14-year-old Shavonne Lees was in Las Vegas with her family to watch the Spice Girls reunion concert. The teen's mother, Sheila Lees, says she couldn't get over how happy her daughter was to be there.
"It was the first concert Shavonne had ever been to," said Sheila. "I think I spent more time watching her facial expressions than watching the concert."
Shavonne has Spina bifida, a birth defect resulting in an incompletely formed spinal cord. Due to complications from her condition, the Westville teen has spent much of her life in and out of hospitals. In fact, just days after she returned from her vacation in Las Vegas, she was due back at Halifax's IWK for yet another surgery.
Sheila says her daughter needed a break from hospitals. That's when the Sunshine Foundation, a foundation that makes dreams come true for children and teens with severe physical disabilities or life-threatening illnesses, agreed to help the family. They sent Shavonne, her mother, her father Wesley and siblings Katelyn and Austin to Las Vegas on an all-expenses-paid, five-day trip.
Though Shavonne didn't get to meet the Spice Girls in person, her mother says she still had a blast. Sheila says this trip has created fond memories for her daughter, memories she will be able to look back on years from now.
"I told her to put all those memories in a treasure box and when she's sad, to think of that time," said Sheila.
Her mother says most importantly, she was relieved to see her daughter, during the trip, never seemed to worry about being ill. Throughout the concert, Shavonnne "never missed a beat." She knew every word of every song, Sheila says.
"She just enjoyed herself. And that's all I wanted for her."