A Wonderful But Sad Story of an Early Halloween

My daughter was born on Oct. 30, so Halloween in our house has always been a combination of a birthday celebration mixed with Halloween festivities. The toughest Halloween we ever spent as a family was in 1992 when my daughter was admitted to the hospital on the night of her 4th birthday with a severe intestinal flu and on Halloween night, as families all around us celebrated the holiday, her mother and I ate dinner at a mall's food court between hospital visits. Seeing all those happy families while our girl was in Children's Hospital was a little tough.

Thankfully, our Halloween story had a happen ending and my daughter came home the next day and quickly recovered. For a family in Fort Worth, their Halloween story is both heartwarming and terribly sad:

FORT WORTH -- For two hours Thursday night, 7-year-old Trinity Rhyan Bright, in costume as a baby holding a big bottle, went trick-or-treating in her northwest Fort Worth neighborhood.

For most children, Halloween's not for four more weeks.

Didn't matter. Trinity's family and friends just want to make her happy and Trinity loves Halloween.

The first-grader has diffuse pontine glioma, an inoperable brain cancer.

A neighbor, Scott Nipp, said the idea for an early Halloween started recently when Trinity's parents, John and Angel Bright, asked neighbors if they would hand out candy during a mock night of trick-or-treating.

Nipp said his wife, Rhonda, and other neighbors quickly organized a much bigger celebration.

"Everyone has been touched by her story," Trina Booker said. "If we can just make one day special for Trinity and her family, we'd stop at nothing to do that."

Fire trucks, police cars and clowns showed up in the neighborhood near the corner of Boat Club and Ten Mile Bridge roads. Friends dressed in elaborate costumes and more than a dozen neighbors decorated their homes and handed out treats. Activities included a bean bag toss and fishing for toys.

"We're excited to see all of the people who were here for her," said Trinity's mother, Angel, who wore a black-and-white striped prison costume. "This was good because she loves to dress up and she loves candy."

The Brights' Web site describes the family's shock at the sudden onset of the cancer. Trinity first experienced double vision March 3; by March 13, an oncologist at Cook Children's Medical Center was giving the parents the devastating news that their daughter has a rare cancer that is hard to treat. Most patients live only six to 12 months after diagnosis.

"At this time we are currently seeking treatment options around the world. There have been no reported cases of anyone beating this disease, but we want to," they write on the Web site. Thursday night, Trinity's wheelchair was pushed mostly by her father, John, who also wore prison stripes.

Trinity's speech was slow and slurred. She is swollen from steroid medications, her mother said. But she was taking it all in.

This event took place just this past Thursday night. According to a family friend, Trinity passed away in her sleep this morning. She had her Halloween celebration thanks to wonderful friends and neighbors, but sadly the family will spend the actual Halloween night without her. Our prayers are with the family.