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Selena Flores’ smile said everything.
The 3-year-old Farmingdale girl walked into WHIP Pediatric Cancer’s headquarters in Hauppauge on Tuesday with no idea a puppy named Goldie was waiting for her.
The moment she saw the fluffy Cavapoo, her face lit up. She wrapped her arms around her new best friend and covered her with kisses.
For Selena, who has spent much of her young life facing the challenges of pediatric cancer, Goldie was more than a puppy.
She was a reason to keep smiling.
“This is going to help out my daughter in so many ways,” Selena’s dad, Junior, told Greater Long Island. “The comfort level is the biggest thing. It’s so amazing what WHIP Pediatric Cancer has done.”
Goldie, a 10-week-old puppy from Britt’s Darling Doodles in Utah, was donated to WHIP Pediatric Cancer after Selena said her biggest wish was to have a puppy of her own. Her name was chosen in honor of the gold ribbon, the symbol of childhood cancer awareness.
“I’ve been so excited planning this for months, and just seeing her reaction when she said, ‘Can we bring Goldie home?’ is literally the best thing ever,” said WHIP Pediatric Cancer founder Jordan Belous.
Belous founded WHIP Pediatric Cancer 11 years ago after her family experienced the impact of childhood cancer firsthand. The Long Island nonprofit supports children and families affected by pediatric cancer while funding research and creating programs designed to bring comfort, hope and moments of joy during some of the hardest days of their lives.
How it happened
Getting Goldie from Utah to Long Island took a community effort.
Belous made a Facebook post hoping someone might be able to donate airline miles or help cover the cost of the flight.
The message reached Johnny McKay, a Southwest Airlines flight attendant based in Las Vegas, who shared the story internally. Before long, it made its way to Southwest CEO Bob Jordan, who immediately embraced the mission and helped make the trip possible.
“This is amazing that I was able to play a small role in this,” McKay said. “Selena and her family deserve this. Southwest is the Love Airline. Bob didn’t hesitate when I asked if we could make this happen.”
McKay’s connection to the cause was personal. He first met Belous 10 years ago at a childhood cancer rally in Washington, D.C.
“There’s of course sadness when anyone is going through something difficult like Selena is, but if you can bring a little light to that, it’s nothing but what we should be doing,” McKay said. “Humans should be helping humans.”
More than 20 pet companies also stepped in, donating toys, food, treats, a bed and other supplies to help ease the financial burden of Goldie’s new beginning on Long Island.
Selena is the youngest of three children, with two older brothers who have been cheering her on every step of the way.
Their parents said the idea of getting a dog came after Selena developed a bond with a comfort dog during her stays at Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park.
“They have a comfort dog there for the kids named Dutton,” he said. “He would come around for any procedure, and Selena fell in love with him. So I looked at my wife and said, ‘We need a dog when we come home.'”
For Belous, that kind of comfort is the reason behind everything WHIP Pediatric Cancer does.
“She’s going to have a best friend for the next 20 years of her life, and I’m so excited for her,” Belous said. “Giving kids with cancer their childhood back is really what it’s all about. This is a core memory for her, something she’ll remember for the rest of her life. Once she gets healthy, she’ll look back on this memory, and that’s the goal here.”
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