Ryan Reynolds has donated £10,000 to a British girl with a rare and aggressive form of heart cancer whose dream is to visit New York this Christmas.
Lexi, from Wrexham, North East Wales, was diagnosed with the disease just weeks after returning from a ‘carefree and happy’ holiday with her family this June.
It has meant the 13-year-old has since been through two open-heart surgeries, has had a pacemaker fitted, and is now undergoing intensive rounds of chemotherapy.
Compounding the heartbreak for the Collins family, whose lives have been turned upside down since that summer day, Lexi’s dog – her ‘best friend and ‘constant companion’ – also died while she was in surgery.
Despite the ‘whirlwind of hospital stays, fear and uncertainty’, Lexi’s mother Rebecca Collins says her daughter has faced every challenge with a fearlessness and strength that has left them ‘in awe’.
And it appears her bravery has caught the attention of the Wrexham FC co-owner and Hollywood A-lister, whose donation to a GoFundMe has seen the total target of £20,000 smashed with some change to spare.
Ms Collins initially arranged a separate fundraiser, which reached more than £13,000 from locals sending their best wishes, in the hope of bringing Lexi’s Christmas dream to life.
The 13-year-old is an obsessive fan of the iconic 1990 film Home Alone, and her biggest wish is to visit the Rockerfeller Christmas tree like her favourite character Kevin.
Lexi Collins (above) was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer of the heart just weeks after returning from a holiday with her family this June
The 13-year-old (left) has since been through two open-heart surgeries, has had a pacemaker fitted, and is now undergoing intensive rounds of chemotherapy
It appears Lexi’s bravery has caught the attention of Reynolds (above) whose donation has taken them well beyond their total target of £20,000
To help Lexi have her Christmas miracle, Wrexham Police FC launched the GoFundMe titled ‘Help Lexi’s dream take flight’ with a target of £5,000, which Reynolds donated to earlier on Sunday afternoon.
The football club, which is made up of off-duty cops, were founded in 2022 and have raised more than £65,000 for charity in their three years on the pitch.
Ahead of their last-ever game today, the club made it their mission to ‘make it count for Lexi’.
After receiving the heartwarming donation from Reynolds, the club posted: ‘A huge thank you to our friend [Ryan Reynolds] for once again showing his incredible generosity.’
‘Because of his support, Lexi will be heading to New York when she’s feeling well enough.’
The club went on to add that while not all heroes wear capes, ‘this one wears a red and black suit’ – a nod to Reynolds’ big-screen appearances as Marvel antihero, Deadpool.
After Reynolds’ donation took Ms Collins’ fundraising efforts beyond the target of £20,000, she expressed her ‘overflowing gratitude’ to the actor, as well as North Wales Police and all other people who have donated.
She said: ‘We don’t even know where to begin in saying thank you. Our hearts are overflowing with gratitude to Ryan Reynolds, North Wales Police, and every single person who has donated, shared a kind word, or held Lexi in their thoughts.
Lexi is an obsessive fan of the iconic 1990 film Home Alone, and her biggest wish is to visit the Rockerfeller Christmas tree (above)
‘We could never have imagined the love and support that has poured in — not just from our own community, but from complete strangers across the world. Every penny given, every message of encouragement, every act of kindness has lifted us up during the hardest time of our lives.
‘Lexi is so excited about planning her trip to New York City, and it means the world to her to know she has such an incredible army of people cheering her on.
‘From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for standing with us, for loving Lexi, and for reminding us that even in the darkest times, there is so much light in the world.’
With the money left over, Ms Collins may look to create Lexi’s dream bedroom which will give her a ‘a peaceful, cosy space where she can rest and recover surrounded by comfort and joy.’
Ms Collins added in a post online: ‘After everything she’s been through, we just want to give Lexi something to look forward to. Something magical. Something that feels like hope.’
Reynolds’ donation to Lexi’s fundraiser is not the first time he has assisted young Wrexham residents in their battles with cancer.
In May this year, he and the club’s co-owner Rob McElhenney sent £5,000 to Catherine Jackson, a 42-year-old who was skydiving in aid of Young Lives v Cancer after being inspired by a 12-year-old who had been diagnosed with the disease.
