Mars graduate is role model, proof wishes can come true
ADAMS TWP — Mars High School graduate and volunteer firefighter Ezra Taimuty-Loomis has found a new role inspiring children with chronic illnesses like his to keeping fighting to see their wishes come true.
This winter, the 21-year-old University of Pittsburgh student was featured in a Make-A-Wish public service announcement, encouraging those with chronic illnesses to keep pursuing their dreams, with Taimuty-Loomis serving as proof it's possible.
Taimuty-Loomis grew up in Adams Township with mitochondrial disease, a life-threatening disorder in which the mitochondria in the cell malfunctions, potentially resulting in organ failure and other serious issues. He spent much of his early life in and out of hospitals for treatment.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation reached out to the family when he was 6 years old, outfitting Taimuty-Loomis with an electric fire truck and fire play house.
His passion for firefighting stuck. As a teenager, he would follow fire trucks and make videos of firefighters on calls.
“One day, the fire chief notices me and said I should join the fire department,” Taimuty-Loomis said.
The year he turned 14 years old, he joined as a junior member at the Adams Area Fire District, learning the ins and outs of fire fighting and working on the scene in a supporting capacity. Junior firefighters don't go into burning buildings or directly engage with ongoing fires.
His mother, Mannie Taimuty-Loomis, said the whole family was soon involved.
“It ended up becoming a family journey of all of us becoming part of the fire department, and it's changed all of our lives,” she said. “None of this would've happened if it wasn't for Ezra and his wish.”
Mannie Taimuty-Loomis said her son inspired many of his peers to join as well.“He's touched and changed the lives of so many people,” she said.Today, Taimuty-Loomis is a computer engineer student at Pitt, where he's in his third year.While his studies leave him no time to fight fires, Taimuty-Loomis said he's found new ways to contribute, most recently at an internship with MSA in Cranberry Township.“I was working on a product that the fire department will be using in a few years,” he said. The details of that project have yet to be publicized.Even after his initial wish in 2004, the Make-A-Wish Foundation continued to be a presence in his and his family's lives, giving Taimuty-Loomis a scholarship to help pay for college and most recently reaching out to cast him in their latest public service announcement.They called in December to see if he'd be interested.“I got all the details and found out they wanted me to do it,” he said.Soon he was on a flight for a four-day trip to Los Angeles complete with sightseeing, costuming and finally shooting the scene in the hills north of the city.“That was a whole fun experience in and of itself,” Taimuty-Loomis said.The announcement, “Where There's a Wish, There's a Way,” casts several children involved in the Make-A-Wish Foundation with a message of following your dreams, beginning with young children still coming to terms with their illnesses and ending with Taimuty-Loomis, the adult who fought to make his wishes come true.“The goal of it is to show me the grown up who had a wish at their age,” he said. “To show the kids if someone like me can do that, then I can be an inspiration for those kids to fight through their illnesses.”For more information about the Make-A-Wish Foundation, visit wish.org.
