The Boy and The (Tiffany) Blue Corvette

In the garage of their Swanzey, New Hampshire home, he and his younger sister Charlotte play pretend mechanic on a power wheels Jeep. The Corvette gleams in the background, and on the rear window— look closely—and you’ll notice a pediatric cancer ribbon, a symbol of courage. On the last day of 2019, at 20 months old, Connor was diagnosed with brain cancer. This is his story.

An unexpected turn

When Connor was born, there was a lot of excitement in the family. He was the first grandbaby on both sides, and since day one, has been a sweet, sociable, “chill little man,” Celeste, his mother said. To this day, he is always happy to be around people. It was around six to nine months when Celeste and Chris noticed that Connor wasn’t meeting his milestones, like sitting up on his own, or crawling. “It really wasn't quite adding up,” Celeste said. “And we definitely got that parent's intuition that something wasn't right.”
 Months would pass before Connor would receive a brain scan at Dartmouth Health Children’s DHMC on December 31—also Celeste’s birthday. (Celeste reflects, "Don't ever make a brain scan appointment on your birthday.")

Angela Ricci, MD, sat at Connor’s bedside and revealed the news: there was a glioma tumor located in his brain stem. “Our world just fell apart at that point,” Chris said.

As fast as greased lightning

Chris, Celeste, and Connor would remain at the hospital for the next few days. The medical team worked fast to find a pediatric neurologist to perform a biopsy on January 2, 2020.

“When dealing with brain cancer, things move incredibly quickly. No time is wasted in forming a plan,” Celeste said. The goal was to remove as much of the tumor as possible, while ensuring it doesn’t grow or spread.

The team at Dartmouth Health Children’s would navigate the Ponce family through a plan of care, with Geraldine Rubin, MD, at Cheshire Medical Center as Connor’s pediatrician, and Ricci as his pediatric oncologist.

“Dr. Ricci has really been our advocate from day one, getting to know Connor in terms of what works for him, what doesn't work for him, getting to understand his brain cancer,” Chris said. As Connor’s pediatrician since birth, Rubin naturally stepped in to play an integral role in Connor’s care: arranging referrals and resources for the family.

As the world would shut down for the COVID pandemic, Connor would continue several rounds and types of chemotherapy, with weekly visits to Dartmouth Health Children’s. He’s since switched to a daily chemotherapy treatment that can be done at home.

Connor felt the impact: Nausea, fatigue, and lack of appetite all set in. Filomena Kersey, RDN, LD, a pediatric dietitian, worked with Connor’s parents to find foods that he could stomach. Connor soon started what his parents thought to be inevitable: brain radiation treatment. “We knew it was coming,” Celeste said. “We had already thought of how we're going to figure it out, because that's part of being a parent to a child with cancer. You think of everything you need to do to get your kid the care that they need, and you just figure it out.” 


Life is a highway

Throughout his care, Connor has never complained, his parents said. “There's been days where it's been extremely difficult for my wife and me, and he has just been solid,” Chris said. 


He smiles and greets the nurses and staff; he knows the routine, pointing the stethoscope to his heart. If either of his parents are having a rough day, he asks if they need a hug.

And in the middle of the COVID pandemic, he asked for a sister. Chris and Celeste explained to Connor that they couldn’t exactly choose, but he was certain. In 2021, Charlotte was born.

“Their bond is amazing,” Chris said. “As soon as he laid eyes on her, that was it.” They are inseparable.

And they have fun. Thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, a dream trip to Disney World was granted at a Swanzey community event organized for Connor. Fire trucks, police, first responders, and a parade came together to announce the exciting news.

At Disney last year, Connor was “on Cloud 9,” Celeste said, enjoying rides, eating food, and meeting all his favorite characters.

At home, he finds happiness in the simple things, like driving around town and “cruisin’ for chicks,” (a family inside joke), or carefully washing his power wheels Jeep while his dad washes the ‘Vette.

Oftentimes, Connor’s aunt and grandmother will be over—they are major pillars of support—and the family will watch movies together. It’s a full house, and Celeste calls it, “beautiful chaos.”


“We finally got to a point of, ‘cancer’s hard,’ but your life still has to go on,” she said. “You can’t live your life on pause.”