The house is among three in the Ocean City area owned by the foundation. It launched its beach house initiative in a two-story, five-unit property on 66th Street, about a block from the beach; it also owns a two-bedroom townhouse on Fenwick Island, Del. (Yet another vacation spot, a 13-room log home, is at Wisp Resort in Garrett County.)
Along with two hospital housing facilities in Baltimore, Believe in Tomorrow has provided more than 300,000 overnight accommodations to children and families from every state in the U.S. since its inception in 1986. Now as foundation officials celebrate the one-year anniversary of the House on the Bay, they're preparing to open respite houses in Phoenix, Ariz., and Landing, N.J.
"They're growing in number," said Ann Armstrong-Dailey, chief executive officer of Children's Hospice International, a Virginia-based nonprofit organization that promotes hospice support through pediatric care facilities.
She lauded Believe in Tomorrow for offering respites to families that "often feel overburdened with the day-to-day challenges of having a sick child in the home."
For families like the Nicholses, the time away is important - even if it means simply curling up with a good book. One day last week, Tomas plopped onto the living room couch and buried his face in a book about dinosaurs.
He didn't bother to look up as his parents told his story, about how his leukemia forced him to miss all of kindergarten, how he pushed himself to learn to read during first grade, and how he keeps up physically with classmates.
"He doesn't give up, even when he doesn't feel well physically," said his mother, Lenka, who is originally from Prague, Czech Republic. Tomas said he's enjoyed taking part in "all the things here," adding that among the highlights this summer was that water slide. He recently saw the movie Transformers, as well.
"Most of it was scary," he said about the film, but added, "I kept my eyes open" during the most frightening scenes.
Paul Nichols remembers that at this time last year, such an outing wouldn't have been possible. "He had been using a Broviac," said Paul Nichols, referring to a catheter used to administer chemotherapy, "but then it sprung a leak inside. Now, he has an external port, which is good because it means he can swim."
Still, family members are cautious even as they try to relax. Tomas has food allergies, which means some of his food has to be specially prepared. There are also infection risks. A temperature higher than 100.3 means a trip to the emergency room.
