Melissa Vassallo Idiens

Founder / Fairy Godmother

Melissa Vassallo Idiens was born with Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a rare skin disease she shared with her father. Throughout her formative years and into early adulthood, Melissa chose to hide her disease as much as possible, focusing, instead, on helping others. When Melissa was 22, she survived a fatal car accident that left her catastrophically impaired and with a great deal of survivor’s guilt. Following more than a hundred surgeries and procedures over an exhausting decade-long physical, mental, and spiritual healing journey, Melissa began to channel her volunteerism into empowering members of the disabled community to not just survive, but to thrive. She returned to university, after having already earned a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in English Literature, to begin a Master’s degree in Critical Disability Studies

Melissa became a passionate and vocal advocate for those living with disabilities. Her work was rewarded in 2011, when she received the Town of Oakville’s Access Award and was named the Rick Hansen Medal Bearer for the 25th anniversary of his prestigious Man in Motion tour. In 2013, Melissa was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.


In 2014, Melissa and her husband, Daryl Idiens, were blessed with a beautiful baby girl they named Amelia (Mia). When it was discovered that Mia, too, had EB, Melissa decided it was time to accept and celebrate her own EB, so she could be a strong role model for her daughter. During Melissa’s search for support, she discovered DEBRA International, a charity which educates people all over the world about EB.

Melissa learned that dEBra UK was founded in 1978 by a woman named Phyllis, whose daughter Debra had EB. And that dEBra Canada was founded in 1998, by a woman named Fran, whose daughter Deanna had EB. Inspired by these brave mothers, in 2015—almost 40 years after DEBRA International was founded—Melissa leveraged her resources and founded her own charitable organization, to give back to the community while honouring her disease and her daughter. MiaThrives exists to connect families touched by EB, to empower Butterfly Children to find their purpose, and to give these children hope and the clear message that they are capable of accomplishing great things. Melissa has come to embrace her EB and enjoys living life to the fullest, alongside her sports-loving husband and their rough-and-tumble daughter. Melissa’s dream is for generations of Butterfly Children, including Mia, to feel inspired to live their best lives. She hopes they will spread their wings and soar!

Melissa’s Butterfly

Melissa is represented by the Red Admiral Butterfly, a dark blue (Melissa’s birthstone and signature colour) butterfly with red dots at the tip of each wing. Jane Goodall was nicknamed “Red Admiral” as a child, and Goodall is one of Melissa’s personal heroes. Blue butterflies symbolize meaningful purpose in life. Having EB and a daughter with EB has given Melissa purpose and a reason to celebrate the EB community, which led to founding MiaThrives. Red butterflies signify a powerful soul and spirit. With the physical impairments and health challenges that Melissa lives with, she continues to rely on her spirit to surmount hurdles. Red also symbolizes passion, which suits Melissa’s passion for bringing positivity to the EB community.

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