SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, March 30 (Gephardt Daily) — Two-year-old McKenzie Reese loves the “Avengers” character Hawkeye.
And after Jeremy Renner, who plays Hawkeye on film, stopped to spend some one-on-one time with the little girl, it was clear she had touched the tough guy’s heart.
Organizers for this year’s Salt Lake Comic Con Fan Xperience made it happen. After Renner’s panel discussion, he went backstage for a private meeting with McKenzie, known as Kenzie, and with her brother and her parents, Michael and Camille Reese.
Dan Farr, founder and president of Salt Lake Comic Con said the request came to his assistant, and they reached out to Renner’s agent to see if the actor would be willing to share a private moment with Kenzie and her family.
“We have an amazing team that helped put this together,” Farr said. “Jeremy was so kind and gracious, to say the least.”
Michael Reese said on a Facebook post that Kenzie was diagnosed with neuroblastoma cancer, and has only a few weeks to live.
“Kenzie even decided she wanted a snuggle from him,” Michael Reese said. “For those that may think that’s not a big deal, it’s been about two weeks since she has come to me for a snuggle.
“During our conversation, as he was talking and being sweet with her, while she had the biggest smile on, Kenzie asked to get down and happily climbed onto Jeremy Renner’s lap.
“It was one of the sweetest moments we have enjoyed over the last few declining weeks and we want to say again thank you to the many individuals who helped make this happen! This will be a sweet memory we will be able to hold onto and cherish.”
Reese said the organizers arranged the private with Renner because Kenzie is too ill to be around large crowds comfortably.
Reese said Renner was teary-eyed by the end of the visit, and they could tell he did not want to leave.
“It was a great 15 minutes with our family’s favorite Avenger!” Reese added.
Kenzie saw Renner briefly at last year’s Comic Con in April when the family took a photo with him.
In June, Kenzie was diagnosed with cancer, and on March 9, the family was given the news that Kenzie’s cancer is terminal.
The Reeses were not the only ones eagerly anticipating the reunion. Renner posted a tweet before arriving in Salt Lake City:
In his post, Renner called Kenzie “my superhero,” confirming that heroes can come in all shapes and sizes.
That’s so sweet! Made me cry. Bless you and your family. Jeremy, you’re a real life hero.
Mr. Renner truly is a superhero to bring comfort to this family.