Twelve-year-old Liam Sysiuk, along with his parents, Brandon and Angie, and his big sister Alyssa, were just one of 15 children and their families who embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime train journey through the Canadian Rockies on September 26, 2024.
The two-day trip, from Banff, Alberta to Vancouver, British Columbia, was donated by Canadian rail-tour company, Rocky Mountaineer, in partnership with Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada, and provided the children who are facing serious or life-altering illnesses, with the rare opportunity to leave behind hospital visits and treatments.
Brandon explained that his son Liam was born with a heart condition that has caused several other complications throughout his childhood
“We actually found out in utero that he had double outlet right ventricle, pulmonary stenosis, and a ventricular septal defect [a hole in his heart],” he said.
While doctors were able to intervene as much as they could, Liam’s parents had to bring him in at around six-months-old for heart surgery.
“They had to artificially give him a pregnancy hormone to trick his body into thinking he was still in the womb as long as they could,” recalled Angie. “They also tried to do an intervention where they put a stent in to keep the valve open so we could go home and get him bigger and stronger before the surgery.”
On top of Liam’s heart condition, his partial hearing loss and just one functioning kidney, his sister Alyssa was also recently diagnosed with kidney disease meaning that between the two Sysiuk children, the family has spent countless hours in various medical appointments getting the care they need.
While Brandon and Angie try to bring Liam and Alyssa on trips whenever they can, it can be hard to do so without worrying.
“When you’re dealing with health concerns, you can’t help but become apprehensive to go places when there’s the risk of something happening to your kids,” said Angie.
Having applied for the train journey several times throughout the years, Brandon figured that because the cut off age for it was 12-years-old, he wanted to try just one more time to get the trip for Liam.
“I’ve applied for the past few years and I knew this would be the last chance for him to get to go on the trip so I figured I would try one last time,” said Brandon. “When I finally got the confirmation email, I couldn’t believe it… I had to reread it.”
“Brandon called me and was like, ‘you need to read the email I just sent you’ and I was so confused because he didn’t even tell me he applied again,” recalled Angie. “We couldn’t believe it, we were just so astonished that we couldn’t even wrap our minds around it.”
Brandon said that despite the circumstances around them getting the trip, it was nice to spend time together as a family without any worries.
“It’s not something you want to celebrate because we ultimately got to go because of our son’s heart condition and that’s been a lot for all of us over the years, but it was nice for us as a family to go and spend time together away from the appointments,” said Brandon. “We spend a lot of time together anyways, but it was just nice to have the opportunity to do it because it was something we would have never had the chance to experience otherwise.”
Bags packed and ready to go, with the help of sponsorship from Aeroplan and the Air Canada Foundation, the Sysiuk family flew from Toronto to Calgary before getting bussed to Banff National Park to start their adventure.
“It was just amazing, Air Canada really rolled out the red carpet for everyone and it was honestly relaxing because all of those little details were taken care of for us and we’ve never had that before,” said Angie. “Everything was covered, the hotels overnight and all of the food too, it was all taken care of and it didn’t stop there either. There were all these surprises sprinkled throughout the trip like a buffet breakfast, stuffed animals for the kids from Build-A-Bear, there was a shopping spree, gift cards and little snacks, it was just incredible.”
Spending the first day in Banff, the family took the opportunity to explore the national park, taking a trip on the gondola to Sulphur Mountain.
When asked what his favourite part of Banff, Liam said it was fun to watch how much his mom and sister were spooked over the high height, as well as the climb up to the old weather tower.
“We were climbing the steps up to the tower and I couldn’t believe how fast he was going up the steps,” laughed Angie. “Brandon and Alyssa had to stay and sit but he just kept going and going. He’s the one with the heart condition but he was ready to go all the way up while I could barely breathe.”
“If I was going on vacation there myself, I would have gone all the way to the top,” Liam added with a smile.
After spending the night in Banff, the family boarded the train early the next morning and began making their way towards Vancouver, passing through Kamloops along the way.
“It was cool because we were getting information on all these different landmarks along the way,” recalled Angie. “We passed by the Hell’s Gate Canyon and the Fraser River and I think we were all just in awe of it. Even when we came home, we put together a scrapbook and when Liam saw the photo of Hell’s Gate, he knew right away what it was so I’m glad that really stuck out for him. He’s our artsy kid and so he’s big on scenery and things like that.”
The surprises continued on the train, each family got a polaroid camera to capture their memories, and there was plenty of on-board entertainment including a dance party with Captain Starlight.
“The whole thing was over the top in the best way possible, they even brought out a caricature artist who did everyone’s family portrait and Captain Starlight was there interacting with all the kids,” said Brandon. “It was just great. It was really nice to just see all the kids having a break from anything medical and just getting the chance to have fun and be a kid.”
Speaking to the train itself, the family described it with one word, “luxury.”
“I’m talking about the most comfortable seats we’ve ever sat on; they were heated and they reclined and it was just more luxurious than anything we’ve ever experienced. The staff on the train were just so kind and so accommodating too. Alyssa has a special diet because of her kidneys and so the staff were absolutely great about making adjustments for both of them. I’m serious, anything they wanted, they got… it really took a lot of the stress around traveling out of the equation.”
On top of great food and incredible seats (Liam’s personal favourite), the parents said that above all, it was nice to be with other families and share each other’s experiences.
“They paired us with a family whose kids were similar in age to ours and even though we’re all there because our kids are dealing with heavy things, it was great to interact with somebody who understands what you’re going through,” said Angie. “Those children may have had different conditions and different severities, but we all understand what it’s like to be in and out of the hospital and dealing with the same concerns. It was also really great to see how inclusive and accepting everyone was, not one single person wasn’t caring or accepting, you know?”
“It’s sad because we were all there with our children who are going through tough things, but it was really heartwarming to just talk and learn things from each other, to know that we weren’t alone,” added Brandon.
The two parents said that they were so grateful to have such an incredible opportunity with their children, but that it was bittersweet nonetheless.
“We’re thankful that we got to go, and we’re so grateful for everyone who made this happen, but at the same time, it’s bittersweet. I loved the trip but I would trade anything in the world to have two healthy kids,” said Angie. “When you go through something like this, it changes your perspective on everything and it reminds you that anything can be taken away from you, no matter who you are, at any time. It’s certainly shaped how we are as a family and it’s made us grateful for every moment we have with them.”
Overall, despite the circumstances, the family said they were happy to have had the chance to build new memories and experience incredible scenery together.
To quote Liam, “it was the most beautiful trip I’ve ever been on.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
