New Hartford, NY (WIBX) - A Rome youngster got a special gift from the Genesis Group this afternoon at Sangertown Mall. After learning about, 10-year-old Aaron Jon Tarbania’s life threatening diagnosis, the group partnered with Make-A-Wish foundation to help make his dream come true.

Make-A-Wish arranged for Aaron to meet the New York Yankees during a game at Yankee Stadium, and Genesis presented him with a baseball and bat, autographed by his favorite team. Aaron was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis in March. His Mon Lani says the diagnosis was devastating. “When he was first diagnosed it was devastating because the only person I ever knew with Cystic Fibrosis is no longer with us and I thought … I don’t want this for my child. And so I started doing a lot of research and doing everything we could to fight this disease,” she said.

The family says the day is some what bitter sweet, because Aaron requested to receive the gifts on the anniversary of his father’s tragic death in a car accident ten years ago when he was only 8-months old. Lani said, “So, this was kind of a happy day instead of a sad day because he got this awesome stuff today, and his dad was a die-hard Yankee fan so it’s like genetically passed onto him.” Ray Durso, Executive Director, The Genesis Group, presented the gifts to Aaron in front of a small crowd at the mall, saying it’s about the community coming together to support one of its members who is dealing with a life threatening illness.

 

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