- April 5, 2025
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Sophia Costa walks down the aisles in Burlington at the Tanger Outlets during her shopping spree with The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Photo by Paige Wilson
Sophia Costa holds up the shoes she said she's going to wear to Thanksgiving dinner. Her mother, Marlene Costa, smiles as David Wiggins, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society executive director, pushes the cart. Photo by Paige Wilson
The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Executive Director David Wiggins, Marlene and Sophia Costa and Burlington operations manager Robert Kellogg pose for a photo. Kellogg told Sophia he is a cancer survivor too. Photo by Paige Wilson
Sophia Costa holds up her $100 gift card at the checkout counter. Photo by Paige Wilson
Sophia Costa and her mother, Marlene Costa, place the new clothing and accessories on the checkout counter. Photo by Paige Wilson
Six-year-old Sophia Costa walked around Burlington with wide eyes and an even wider grin as she picked out clothes, bows and shoes in every shade of pink — her favorite color.
But this wasn’t a normal shopping trip for Sophia and her mother, Marlene Costa. As a leukemia patient, Sophia was recognized as an “honored hero” by the North and Central Florida’s chapter of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The society is in its 17th year of partnership with Burlington to match their “honored heroes” with a store near them for a shopping spree.
Burlington at the Tanger Outlets donated a $100 gift card for Sophia to use on Tuesday, Oct. 2, with her mother and David Wiggins, the executive director of the regional Leukemia and Lymphoma Society chapter.
“It’s really fun because we don’t get to go out that much,” Costa said. “We still kind of live in that bubble because she still has some compromised immune systems, so it’s nice to come out and be able to let her enjoy shopping.”
Sophia said she’s excited to walk back into Rymfire Elementary School with new pink bows in her hair, but she’s saving one of her new dresses for Thanksgiving.
“We’re happy to help Sophia,” Wiggins said after pushing the cart around the store while Sophia filled it with goodies. “You know, going back to school is really important for these kids, so we want to be able to help them go back to school with a smile on their face and be able to get them back into the mainstream.”
Sophia was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in June 2017. Due to intense chemotherapy treatment, her immune system was weakened and doctors advised her to be home-schooled for kindergarten. But now, she’s able to go to first grade while still finishing the remaining year of a less-intense chemo treatment, Costa said.
“She loves her teachers, she loves to go to school and every day she tells me how much fun she had and what she did,” Costa said.
After the shopping spree, Sophia held up two big bags packed with new clothes and fun accessories. Her smile said it all.
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