Make a Wish Foundation

By: Monica Farrell

Last night we had quite a crowd at our Heart to Heart meeting, as Ellen Wheeler, the Wish Coordinator, spoke about the Make a Wish foundation. She said that children can be granted wishes who are between the ages of 2 1/2 and 18 years of age. They can be referred by the parents, medical professionals, or the children themselves. After the referral, a doctor must confirm that the child has a life-threatening condition. When the child is considered eligible, the Wish Granters (I think of them as Fairy Godmothers!!!) meet with the child and ask, "If you could have one wish, what would it be?"

The wishes can fall into one of four categories:

1) Where do you want to go? (Disneyland is by far the most popular place!)
2) Who do you want to meet? (Bow-Wow, who is a child actor, Kurt Warner, the cast of Friends...)
3) What do you want to do? (This could be a massive shopping spree)
4) What do you want to have? (Computers, a bedroom makeover, etc)

Once a child is eligible, there is no time limit on when the wish must be granted. For example, the famous person they want to meet may not be available for a while. Family income is not at all a factor, and no one should worry that if their child receives a wish someone else will be deprived of their wish.

Ellen explained how they raise their funds to afford the wishes. Fundraisers include golf tournaments and charity balls, etc.

For more information, check out the websites below:


Make A Wish link (national):

http://www.wish.org

St. Louis Make A Wish

http://stlouis.wish.org

Take care,

Monica

Monica Farrell, Senior Academic Advisor
College of Business Administration
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Gratitude is the key to happiness.
Be grateful for the good things in life
and pass them on.