Ashley Tsai

Here is a photo from Dreamcatcher’s first ever fulfilled dream, where they threw a party for a terminally ill patient named Ella.

Imagine being a hospice patient. You must sit in the same room every day in pain, knowing each time the sun sets, it might be your last chance to see the orange and pink skies fade to their twilight shades of blue. You are trapped inside your body like a cage, the body that you used to be able to truly live in. You used to dance, you used to run, you used to enjoy each of your days. But, you are now stripped of your ability to live life to its full potential or what feels like any potential. You are stuck with your thoughts and the same hospital routine every day. The thought lurks in the back of your mind that any second, your heart may cease to pulse. This is the life of over 1.7 million hospice patients in the world. 

How would you feel an ounce of optimism in such times of despair? How does someone feel any joy in their last days, when they are filled with endless suffering and discomfort? When you know the end is near, what fuels your heart to continue to beat? How does your soul have the power to keep fighting? These are questions most of us who are lucky enough to be healthy can only hope to never know the answer to. 

But what other answers can we seek for? How can we help those who are not as lucky? How can we help those who live the reality of what you just imagined? Well, the answer and power to do something about it may be closer to us than we think.

Here at Yorba Linda High School, Ashley Tsai (12) decided to get involved. She brought a nonprofit organization called Dreamcatchers to our school as a club that anyone can join. Starting with just herself, her club has grown to over 70 members in a matter of just a year. I had the privilege of getting to talk with Ashley to learn more about Dreamcatchers and what she and the members have achieved together so far. 

Ashley told me she was inspired to start Dreamcatchers because she wanted to “create a unique but necessary impact in [her] community.” Ashley hoped to “bridge the intergenerational gap between teens and our senior friends.” Her goal for Dreamcatchers is to foster powerful connections between younger and older generations, as well as eliminate stigmas around aging and dying. The club hopes to bring smiles to the faces of hospice patients, fulfilling one last dream of theirs.

Dreamcatchers has done just that, having fulfilled 2 dreams and been a part of many service projects in a matter of just two years. Ashley told me about one of her favorite dreams she fulfilled for a patient named Ella, whose final wish was for one more Rock ‘N Roll party. Ashley and a few members of her club visited Ella in the hospital, decorated her room in her favorite colors, brought ice cream, and of course, provided music!

Dreamcatchers has and continues to leave lasting impacts on both our community and our school. If you attend their meetings at lunch, you can participate in various activities such as making blankets or Valentine’s cards for local senior shelters. We all have the chance to participate in Dreamcatchers’ impact by joining the club and attending a few meetings. 

This next year, Ashley explained, “We hope to fulfill at least one dream. It can be hard sometimes because we are working with terminally ill patients whose health often declines quickly. However, with our dedicated board members this year, I think this goal is very achievable!”

This is Ashley’s final year serving as the president of Dreamcatchers. As she moves from the club, she hopes that “Dreamcatchers will continue to make a lasting impact in our community.” She then continued to share that “There is nothing more fulfilling than knowing you are the one who made someone smile. I hope the legacy I leave behind on the club and community is one that inspires others to create smiles too.”