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An islander with cancer has praised the "amazing" owner of a local car dealership for "going above and beyond" to help her secure her dream yellow mini – tracking it down even after it had been sold – to mark her completing treatment in the UK.
24-year-old Antonia Rubio had decided to treat herself to a new car after she arrived back in Jersey following a 10-day stint in Southampton Hospital receiving iodine treatment treatment for thyroid cancer.
Antonia had just been given permission to drive again and was specifically on the lookout for a yellow mini.
"My nana had always wanted one when she was alive but unfortunately never got the chance to own one before she passed away," she explained.
Pictured: Antonia Rubio (24) was diagnosed with Papillary Carcinoma, a type of thyroid cancer, in March 2023.
Antonia and her mum drove past St Aubin Car Sales on Sunday, and spotted a yellow mini outside for sale.
"It felt like fate when we saw it!" she said. "We decided we definitely had to buy it the next day."
However, when they went into the dealership on Monday morning to buy the car, owner Peter Chapman informed Antonia that he had sold it just two hours earlier.
Peter explained that Antonia had been "so overjoyed when she walked in thinking she was going to buy it”.
“Her face dropped and she seemed really upset when she realised I'd sold it to someone else," he said.
Pictured: Antonia has named her new yellow mini 'Dolly' after her grandmother.
After chatting to Antonia and her mum, the St Aubin Car Sales owner found out about the 24-year-old's battle with cancer and why the car meant so much to her.
“I knew had to try my hardest to get it for her after what she'd been through," said Peter.
Thankfully, the person who had bought the car was a long-standing customer of St Aubin Car Sales and Peter was able to give him a call.
"I think he thought I'd managed to sell it for more money at first!" laughed Peter. "But once he realised it was genuine, he was happy for Antonia to have the car."
Antonia explained how she was "sobbing" when Peter called to let her know she could have the car.
She described it as "one of the kindest things anyone has ever done".
Antonia said: "When you find out you have cancer, you’re let down by a lot of people you think are going to be there for you.
"But strangers and people you wouldn’t expect show kindness to make up for that."
Pictured: Since her diagnosis, Antonia has been raising awareness about having cancer at a young age.
She continued: "It just means so much to me. When I was in treatment, I was in survival mode and was really strong. It felt like nothing could get me down.
"But since I finished my treatment it's really hit me. Now that I have time to process what happened, I've been crying every day.
"However, Peter's actions showed me that although bad things have happened this year, there is still kindness in the world."
Peter said: "I didn’t do anything special – it was just a couple of phone calls, but I'm glad it worked out."
But for Antonia, his actions "restored my faith in humanity”.
Pictured: Antonia praised the "brilliant business and an amazing person" on social media.
Peter explained that he also believes that "what goes around comes around”.
Shortly after he sorted out the car for Antonia, Peter lost his wallet filled with cash for Christmas presents.
However, it was returned to him with all of the cash still inside in what he described as "a nice bit of Christmas karma".
Antonia is now looking forward to Christmas with her family and friends, before she gets her results in January to determine whether the cancer treatment has worked.
All being well, she will have a final scan in July and could be looking at getting the 'all clear' in August.
She said: "I don’t want having cancer to define me, but I do think it will be the making of me. From now on, life will be different
"I’ve seen it in a new way – you have time to reflect a lot when you're in hospital for long periods of time."
Antonia added: “When I’m able to live my life fully again, I’m not going to let anything get in my way!"
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