Sidara Akalloo’s brave fight with cancer has won her the 2022 Youth Champion Double Chaconia Award, but it’s not the end of her accomplishments.
Speaking to Guardian Media yesterday, Akalloo said she is now writing a song about her life’s journey which she plans to share with the world.
Having been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), a form of blood cancer, in April 2021, Akalloo said the past 17 months had been tumultuous, yet joyful.
The greatest life lesson she said was to celebrate everything, including the smallest blessings.
Since Guardian Media carried her story, Sidara has been a source of strength for children suffering from cancer not just in T&T but also around the world.
Filled with gratitude for the team of local doctors who have been caring for her, Sidara told Guardian Media that her experiences deserved to be recorded in song.
“I am so grateful. This wasn’t just me who won this award, all the cancer children have won. I am proud to win this for them,” Akalloo said.
In a pre-recorded speech shown shortly before she collected the Double Chaconia national award for Youthful Resilience from Youth Affairs Minister Foster Cummings, Akalloo celebrated the journey of all cancer children of T&T.
“I am humbled to have been chosen as a nominee and to be shortlisted for this award...But I believe I was not worthy of it. I believe that what I represent deserves it more than I do. I represent all the cancer children of Trinidad and Tobago, those who have passed and those who are still fighting. They deserve to win,” Sidara said as the audience cheered.
She added: “Their fighting spirit deserves to win. Our disease is not our destination, and I have made it my life’s mission for all ill children around the world to know that our disease is not our end, but just a bump in the road.”
Asked what the reaction was when her friends heard she had won the award, Akalloo said she was inundated with calls and congratulatory messages.
“My cancer friends were so happy. They were crying. Their parents say they have been watching the video over and over,” she added.
She hopes that once her song comes out, it could be inspirational for all who are having a tough time with life’s problems.
“I want the entire world to be aware of what cancer children go through so people can help in any way they can. I want cancer children to remember to keep fighting. This isn’t the end,” she added.
She also lauded her friends at Naparima Girls’ High School and her teachers.
“They carry my bag and they are always supportive. My parents have been awesome as well, always encouraging me,” she added.
Saying she is now in remission, Sidara explained: “My schoolwork is manageable. I am now in the second stage of therapy.”
Sidara’s father David Akalloo and her mother Sumatee said they were so pleased with her accomplishment.
David said he broke down in tears when he saw his daughter getting the award at Hyatt Regency in Port-of-Spain last Sunday.
“It was a flood of emotions and when she went on stage, the reaction of the crowd was remarkable. They gave her a standing ovation. It was amazing to hear people react. I am proud of my daughter. She is going in the right direction. She has everything in place emotionally, physically and spiritually,” he said.
Sidara said she keeps close to God and prays daily for strength. Anyone wanting to reach Sidara and her family can call 686-7575.
