VIDEO: Norristown record company helps 11-year-old cancer patient feel like a star
By Dan ClarkJournal Register News Service
Amy Hosmer loves Taylor Swift.
From the day she first heard her, Amy said she began mimicking her style.
While there are most likely millions of girls across the country who have done the same thing, theres something that sets Hosmer apart she was diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was 2 years old.
Initially, doctors told her parents that it was unlikely that she would live long. However, radiation therapy prevailed and the tumor all but went away.
After a yearly checkup at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia in November, doctors saw that the tumor had come back.
But none of that has deterred Amy, 11,
from following her dream of becoming a singer herself.
Taylor Swift made me want to start singing, Amy said at Rotation Records in Norristown.
Over the summer, Amy wrote a song called This Camp at the Ronald McDonald Camp, and her mother posted a video of her singing it to the Facebook page that was created to help Hosmer meet Swift. Continued...
She thought that since we are a record company we could contact Taylor Swift and get her to come meet Amy, Staiber said.
Staiber said that he was able to contact Swift, but Swift was unavailable to meet with Amy.
That didnt stop Staiber and his staff from treating Amy like a pop star in her own right.
We wanted to make her feel like a celebrity for a day, Staiber said.
Amy and her family were picked up Jan. 24 in a limo and taken to meet with her anesthesiologist. After the appointment, she was driven to the Rotation Records record! ing studio on Dekalb Street to record her song, This Camp.
She was given an iPod shuffle pre-loaded with all of her favorite songs. Her favorite gift was a picture signed by Swift.
Since she couldnt be here, she wanted to make sure to give you something, Staiber said to my after handing her the picture.
Following the recording session, Rotation Records held a red carpet event at Place One Apartments in Plymouth Meeting with media and well-wishers waiting to see her.
Ronald McDonald Camp counselor Jason Stussy was there with a big sign wishing Amy well. Continued...
Hosmers day in the spotlight could not have come at a better time. This week, she underwent brain surgery to remove the tumor, and recording her song took the surgery off of her mind.
She has her moments where she worries, Amys mother, Etta, said. But it has definitely taken all of our minds off the surgery.
Apart from the recording and positive attention shes received, she said that her faith in God helps her stay strong when facing surgery.
I know that hell watch over me and help me get over this disease, she said.
She also said that the Ronald McDonald Camp and the friends she made there have helped a lot.
Its nice not having to explain what a tumor or a MRI is, Amy said.
The Ronald McDonald Camp is where she first started to write songs. The first year she was there she wrote a song that was dedicated to a friend who also had a brain tumor. The second year is when she wrote This Camp.
The camp needed a song about it that people could hear, Hosmer said.
Rotation Records will put This Camp on Amazon and iTunes, and the proceeds w! ill go to! the Hosmer Family to help with medical costs.
From the day she first heard her, Amy said she began mimicking her style.
While there are most likely millions of girls across the country who have done the same thing, theres something that sets Hosmer apart she was diagnosed with a brain tumor when she was 2 years old.
Initially, doctors told her parents that it was unlikely that she would live long. However, radiation therapy prevailed and the tumor all but went away.
After a yearly checkup at the Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia in November, doctors saw that the tumor had come back.
But none of that has deterred Amy, 11,
from following her dream of becoming a singer herself.
Taylor Swift made me want to start singing, Amy said at Rotation Records in Norristown.
Over the summer, Amy wrote a song called This Camp at the Ronald McDonald Camp, and her mother posted a video of her singing it to the Facebook page that was created to help Hosmer meet Swift.
Joe Staiber, who co-owns Rotation Records with Tom Jensen, was contacted by a teacher in Plymouth Meeting who volunteers at the Ronald McDonald Camp and knows Hosmer.
She thought that since we are a record company we could contact Taylor Swift and get her to come meet Amy, Staiber said.
Staiber said that he was able to contact Swift, but Swift was unavailable to meet with Amy.
That didnt stop Staiber and his staff from treating Amy like a pop star in her own right.
We wanted to make her feel like a celebrity for a day, Staiber said.
Amy and her family were picked up Jan. 24 in a limo and taken to meet with her anesthesiologist. After the appointment, she was driven to the Rotation Records recording studio on Dekalb Street to record her song, This Camp.
She was given an iPod shuffle pre-loaded with all of her favorite songs. Her favorite gift was a picture signed by Swift.
Since she couldnt be here, she wanted to make su! re to giv! e you something, Staiber said to my after handing her the picture.
Following the recording session, Rotation Records held a red carpet event at Place One Apartments in Plymouth Meeting with media and well-wishers waiting to see her.
Ronald McDonald Camp counselor Jason Stussy was there with a big sign wishing Amy well.
It is a great event for a great girl, Stussy said. He and many others were excited to see that Amy was happy.
Hosmers day in the spotlight could not have come at a better time. This week, she underwent brain surgery to remove the tumor, and recording her song took the surgery off of her mind.
She has her moments where she worries, Amys mother, Etta, said. But it has definitely taken all of our minds off the surgery.
Apart from the recording and positive attention shes received, she said that her faith in God helps her stay strong when facing surgery.
I know that hell watch over me and help me get over this disease, she said.
She also said that the Ronald McDonald Camp and the friends she made there have helped a lot.
Its nice not having to explain what a tumor or a MRI is, Amy said.
The Ronald McDonald Camp is where she first started to write songs. The first year she was there she wrote a song that was dedicated to a friend who also had a brain tumor. The second year is when she wrote This Camp.
The camp needed a song about it that people could hear, Hosmer said.
Rotation Records will put This Camp on Amazon and iTunes, and the proceeds will go to the Hosmer Family to help with medical costs.