It wasn’t long after Andrejczyk won her silver medal, realizing a lifelong ambition along the way, that she knew she wanted to do something more than let it gather dust in a display case on her mantle.
Shortly after the 25-year-old returned home, Andrejczyk announced that she wanted to use her medal for a good cause – and she soon found her calling when she was made aware of the story of a young Polish boy who had been sent to the United States in the hope of receiving life-saving, incredibly expensive surgery.
The boy in question, Milosz, suffers from a rare heart complaint called Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection (TAPVC), which essentially means that his pulmonary veins do not work correctly.
She also outlined the steps involved to make a bid, with the sum total of the campaign said to be seeking around $180,000.
“I hope whoever wins the auction gives it right back to her,” was the response of one impressed fan online, who hopes that Andrejczyk’s good deed will see her Olympic medal returned to her.
“‘Humanity‘ comes at us everyday,” noted another. “Thank you, Maria.“
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