Learn More About Make-A-Wish Foundation

The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a United States-based non-profit organization that aims to fulfill the wishes of kids with critical diseases. The age of such children must be between 2 ½ and 18 years. The organization was founded in 1980 and its headquarters is situated in Phoenix. Make-A-Wish Foundation has 59 chapters situated in different parts of the United States. It has 39 international affiliates and works in about 50 countries.

In 1980, Christopher James Greicius, a 7-year-old boy, was taking his treatment for leukemia. He wished to become a police officer. Tommy Austin, an U.S. Customs Officer, connected with some officers in the Public Safety of the Arizona Department to create a surprise for Greicius. Little Chris could spend a full day as a strict police officer. He could ride in a police helicopter, get a police uniform prepared for him, and also be sworn in as the first honorary patrolman in Public Safety in the history of the state. Even though Greicius did not live long after that, he was the inspiration behind the Make-A-Wish organization.

How does the process take place?

A child who wants to fulfill his/her wish must be referred by any of the below sources.

• Parents or legal guardians of the child
• A medical professional who treats the child, mostly a provider, child-life specialist, social worker, or nurse.
• A member of the family of the kid who has the complete details of the condition and treatment of the kid.
• The kid himself/herself.

There is an online form of the Make-A-Wish organization for the sources to connect with the organization or they can visit the closest chapter of the organization near them. The medical information of the kid will be kept confidential unless it is required to grant the wish and it will be with the consent of the parents or guardians of the child.

After getting the referral of the child, the staff of the Make-A-Wish organization will work with the healthcare team of the child to ensure the medical eligibility of the child to fulfill his/her wish based on the Make-A-Wish medical criteria. Furthermore, the child must not have received any other wish from other organizations for wish-granting.

There are some guidelines and policies for every Make-A-Wish chapter to grant the wish of a child. The team also works closely with the family and physician of the child to fix the best time to fulfill the wish of the child. The treatment protocols along with other concerns are taken into consideration while determining a time so that no treatment gets affected. The common wish requests will be mostly in five divisions – I wish to give, I wish to have, I wish to meet, I wish to be, and I wish to go.

John Cena, the professional wrestler, holds the title for granting the most wishes by a single individual with more than 650 wishes. The Make-A-Wish kids are honored as the Disney Wish godchildren by Disney Cruise Line on June 24, 2022.