Sixteen-year old Elizabeth from Angier had a very unique wish — to have her bedroom turned into a reptile breeding area! “I didn’t really want to go on a trip or anything,” she said. “They kind of needed the cages, and the more cages you have, the more snakes you can get.” The young snake breeder and reptile lover knew exactly what she wanted, and Elizabeth drew a detailed drawing of her future bedroom and was prepared with a list of all of the items she would like to have included.

The new cages for her multiple boas, pythons, corn snakes, geckoes, bearded dragons and yellow-bellied sliders include basking shelves, heat panels, misters, caves for hiding, jungle gyms, vines and even tropical plants. Elizabeth wanted to make sure that she could regulate the temperature and humidity level for each cage, since each snake and reptile lives in different conditions. The room was finished with 15 separate housing units.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation^® wanted to give Elizabeth a wish party to celebrate her new habitats and bedroom.  However, the party had to be pushed back due to a 10-day delayed discharge from Duke Children’s Hospital for treatment of her stage-four osteosarcoma.  The North Carolina Museum of Life and Science in Durham graciously hosted the event attended by Elizabeth and her friends and family.

The unique nature of Elizabeth’s wish drew the interest of the area media.  Elizabeth told reporters that her pets help her relax when outside of her doctor’s office.