Beyond The Wish - Liam

Liam Cotton's Power Rangers wish saw him morph into one of the colour-coded, skin-tight superheroes.

But the wish transformed him in other ways, too.

Liam was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia at age 6. What followed was three and a half years of chemotherapy and other treatments.

Liam's diagnosis was a shock for mum Kris. But she said she had no choice other than to "put one foot in front of the other".

Those footsteps led to Make-A-Wish. Liam wished to be a Power Ranger for the day and fight with the Red Power Ranger.

Liam spent the day in Auckland (New Zealand), where the Australian version of Power Ranges is filmed. Liam got his own director's chair as he watched the actors go through their paces.

"They made him feel like the most important person there," Kris said.

"They had 'battles' with Liam, and he won every time. The wish was the boost Liam needed right when he needed it.

"He had control over something. It was so wonderful for him, so empowering."

Liam had breakfast and lunch with the cast and was given a t-shirt, toys and a massive teddy bear to take home.

The teddy bear has been in or on Liam's bed every day since the 2016 wish.

The impact of the wish has also stayed with Liam. Kris said the wish energised her son.

"After the wish, he wanted to be outdoors, like a Power Ranger," Kris said.

"He had all these ideas, scenarios, about what Power Rangers could do.

"For months after the wish, he wore his Power Ranger outfits to every medical appointment. The Red Power Ranger also wrote him a letter; it was very encouraging.

"(Now in 2023), he is still unsure what he wants to do with his life, but what the wish gave him remains. It gave him confidence."

Kris said seven years after the wish, Liam still occasionally swaps messages with the Red Power Ranger on Facebook.

The wish also inspired Kris, who became a Make-A-Wish volunteer.

"Make-A-Wish makes magic happen," she said.

"There is no way we can do anything ourselves like the wish. All these years later, I still can't believe it happened. It was unforgettable."