Angel With Attitude Foundation

Day 6: CHD Awareness Week EVERLASTING FRIENDSHIP Written by Sarah Beattie...Continue reading

Day 5: CHD Awareness Week AN ORDINARY DAY, WITH AN EXTRAORDINARY FRIEND Written by Stephanie Alexandre... Alysha was someone who could always find the fun in everything, and her presence would light up a room. High school could get pretty rough, especially at Carroll where we were always stressed about catching up with our homework! But no matter what, Alysha had so much joy and would find a way to make the best of it. I remember one lunch time we had together, where we bonded over our favourite country singers, and one of them was Hunter Hayes. Suddenly, she grabbed some tape and we made a little 3-D stick man who we called Pocket Hayes and would take turns bringing him with us as a good luck charm for tests or study nights. One day she showed up with a little vest she made for him, and I couldn’t believe how much joy that little stick man brought to our school hours. Of course, one of the boys had to destroy Mr. Pocket Hayes, but that couldn’t ruin her fun. I remember how a few of us in our friend group had to work on a video project for English, which was an assignment Alysha had already finished. But she decided to help us out anyways as our director and motivational support, and organized the day with snacks and games to the point where she turned the project into a party. I learned so much from this girl, and I couldn’t be more grateful to have a friend who could turn ordinary days into some of my favourite memories. Love, Stephanie

Day 4: CHD Awareness Week A HEART & A HAT Written by Chris Leptich Meeting Alysha for the first time is one of my fondest memories. Knowing that she was a Riders fan, and me being a Stamps fan, I decided to wear a Stamps hat to evoke a reaction from her. In true Alysha fashion the first words out of her mouth when she saw my hat were that is a stupid hat! Those words were the start of a wonderful relationship.... From attending Flames games to touring Boston with her sisters, Alysha always made our adventures more interesting. Her wit and humor would always brighten up our conversations. She had this uncanny ability to interject the perfect comment at the perfect time, which most often led to uncontrollable laughter for those in the room. Looking at this picture of us in Boston always brings a smile to my face. Alysha’s smile and iconic peace sign will forever be etched in my heart. Love, Chris

Day 3: CHD Awareness Week THE RED RABBIT Written by Emme Couture Alysha had a spunk like no other. Ever since we met (and I couldn’t even tell you how little we were) she had a bright sassy energy that lit up a room. She was smart, mature, and didn’t let anyone screw her over. I loved that about her. She was the kind of girl that would order your food for you at the Winter Club cafeteria if you were too shy, even at the age of 10. ...Continue reading

Day 2: CHD Awareness Week A WEIGHTED HEART: Written by Jody Bencharski There is no shortage of positive things to say about Alysha. I want to express my thanks to the Oliphant family for allowing me to spend so much time with her.... The age gap between us was significant but I can easily say that she was one of my friends. I looked out for her and she looked out for me. I will miss her constant text messages to remind me to do all sorts of stuff, we used to laugh and refer to her as Kelsi and I’s secretary. Having a workout session with Alysha was always something that I looked forward to. She always had so much to tell me about Kelsi, sports, her parents, our UP band stats, school, weekend plans etc. We would often take over the personal training studio to blast country music while she worked out. At our last Heartbeats event I had the opportunity to push Alysha in her wheel chair for the 5KM (picture below) and I was so honored to do so. This picture is a significant one because it was the last time that we were together. We had to stop once to drain her lung fluid bag. I didn’t fully grasp the severity of her condition at the time because she was so talkative and bubbly, like usual. Before the run we made sure she had a GoodEarth hot chocolate in her hand (she informed me that they are WAYYYY better than the ones from Starbucks), she laughed at our participation in the warmup, then once we were on the trail she facetimed her favorite person in the world, Kelsi, and called her Dad. She loved her family so much! Never had anything negative to say about them. We talked all about her plans for school and how she had so many gift certificates to spend. The following month when I found out about her passing truly rocked me. My deepest sympathies go out to all who feel the loss of this wonderful Angel. I believe that she is running around, care-free in Heaven, feeling an abundance of love from each of us, a tennis racket in her hand, country music blasting, with Subway sandwiches and hot chocolate awaiting her game breaks. Alysha will always have a place in my heart. The world is really missing out! Love, Jody