About Camillo
Camillo was a very bright, cheerful, lovable and playful 4 year old. He was a very strong willed individual with great determination and perseverance. Camillo had beautiful curly hair and piercing blue eyes that went almost never unnoticed.
Camillo was a very calm child who made everyone laugh. During his lengthy stay at the hospital, his term of endearment to his favorite nurses and doctors was "stinky”. If you were referred to as “stinky” you were considered to be his good buddy. Camillo loved playing with his trucks and his car collection which included a Volkswagen Beetle Collection. During his 9 months stay at the Montreal Children’s Hospital Camillo loved playing with his Volkswagen Beetle collection. Camillo enjoyed all the moving parts the cars in which his collection offered. We would lift up the hood and pretend to fix the engine or pretend to fix a flat on his VWs. Playing with his Beetle cars always put a smile on Camillo’s face. His collection had become his passion. Camillo had friends and family scouring the city for specific models, colors, and sizes of Volkswagen Beetles.
Camillo’s very first Beetle was a big blue one. He would take this car everywhere with him. At night he would park it next to the fireplace where he had built a makeshift garage for it. One morning Camillo and I went off to work and daycare while his dad would drop off his sister at school and head off to work. I distinctly remember receiving a call from my husband asking me if I knew where our Volkswagen Passat keys were. He ended up taking a cab to work because the keys to the Passat were never found. That night from daycare I asked Camillo if he knew where daddy’s keys were and he replied very proudly, “Of course! Mommy, I put the keys in the Beetle because I had to back it up in its garage.” We all had a good laugh. At the hospital, on a daily basis we would play a game whereby Camillo would stand on the window sill and look for Volkswagen Beetles. His face would light up upon seeing one. He would shout “Beetle!! Beetle!!!. To this day whenever family and friends see a beetle we all think of Camillo. We promised Camillo when he would leave the hospital, we would rent a VW Beetle and drive him home with it. Unfortunately he never left the hospital and he passed away before he could drive in his favorite car. Camillo also loved his jeep. His many hours of driving his jeep brought him great joy and pride.
Camillo also enjoyed expressing himself through art. Camillo’s greatest love was his sister and he was the happiest when playing with Sabrina.
Healing with a Smile
About Sabrina
About Camillo
Programs Funded
Program Booklet
Stories & Anecdotes
