Laura and David , Siena ’ s father , and younger brother , Dominic , 5 , and half-sister Giordin , 25 , monitored the remodel throughout the entire process .
“ When I saw the room I was in awe ,” Laura said , adding , “ I wish it was mine . She has the best room in the house , she deserves it .”
Everyone agreed that the big reveal should be a big surprise for Siena , so she was restricted from her room during the remodel process .
The end result is a room featuring remote lighting , hard wood floors , and a flexible floor plan to accommodate Siena ’ s changing needs . Furtado removed the closet doors and replaced them with easy access drapery fabric . A beautiful wildlife mural was painted on the inside of the closet , courtesy of Siena ’ s art teacher at Dabble Art Studio in Gilroy . Furtado added a spindle bed that provides extra grab support for Siena . A hanging swing was another addition to the room , as was a special wall designated for the nine-yearold ’ s artwork .
“ Turns out she ’ s an amazing artist so we made sure to incorporate that in the room as well ,” Furtado said . “ We painted some vintage frames black and framed all of her art work in a gallery work .”
As much anticipation as there was leading up to the day of the big reveal , for Furtado there was also a great deal of concern . She feared Siena wouldn ’ t like the makeover . As it turns out there was no reason to worry .
“ Her reaction was priceless ,” Furtado said . “ She screamed and walked in and started walking in circles trying to take it all in . It was really a touching moment and worth all the time that I put in . Just seeing her face was priceless .” Seven months later Siena is still in love with her room . “ I love the wallpaper , I love how it was from somewhere far away from here and painted by artists ,” Siena said . “ I love it a lot , and I love how Lisa decorated it .”
Thanks to the creation by Furtado and a friend of , “ A Room for Siena ,” on the You Caring website , there was zero cost incurred by the Arioto ’ s for the remodel . The fundraising site raised $ 5000 of the $ 6500 project . The additional $ 1500 came from Furtado ’ s business .
Community members also helped out . Heather Pacheco , owner of Shag Beauty Salon , held a fundraiser to benefit Siena . But the most selfless donation came about from a fourth-grade Gilroy Prep classmate of Siena ’ s , nine-yearold Mireya Maquinalez . In February of this year Mireya celebrated her birthday with a party .
What made this party so remarkable was the special request included in the invitations : “ I don ’ t want presents for my birthday this year , I want money to help with Siena ’ s room .”
Mireya ’ s reason behind the request , “ She ’ s my best friend , so I wanted to .”
Mireya ’ s mom , Michelle Maquinalez , wasn ’ t surprised by her daughter ’ generosity .
“ That ’ s the way she is ,” Michelle said . “ She comes up with these things that you wouldn ’ t normally think a nine-yearold would come up with , and this was one of those things .”
The invitations also included the You Caring website address , although many of the donations were hand delivered at the party . Mireya was happy to accept them . She also created a special donation box for Siena , which she presented to her at the party . Siena responded by giving her best friend a big hug .
“ I thought , wow , she ’ s a great friend ,” Siena said , adding that ever since second grade Mireya has always been there for her .
“ It was really nice to have a friend that would always stand up for me and be by my side ,” Siena said .
With all that ’ s facing Siena in the future , having her own special retreat is a great comfort to her parents who will never forget the generosity provided by so many friends . A generosity that ’ s provided Siena a special sanctuary right in her own home .
“ She recently said that she hates that she has FA ,” Laura said . “ But she ’ s really happy with all these cool things that are happening because of it , and that ’ s one of them . To have a place to go to when the house is crazy and your brother is annoying you and you want to get away .”
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2018 gmhtoday . com
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