We are getting to know the Make-a-Wish folks at our house these days. You’ve probably heard about this super cool organization. Its mission is to grant wishes for children affected by life-threatening illnesses. Because of Joshua’s battle with leukemia, we have been recommended to be part of the program.
So last week, Jacquilyn from Make a Wish visited our house to interview Joshua.
The interview was interesting to say the least. Over at our family’s blog, you can read about the interview.
After the interview, we got a call that Joshua’s wish was approved and finalized. It looks like we’re going to see the wish granted sometime in April. We’ll have the reveal of the wish in a couple of months, but for now, I thought you might enjoy reading about some of the recent wishes granted.
From the Make a Wish website, here are some wishes that ESPN has been involved in. Wishes range from shopping trips to room makeovers to trips to amusement parks. We’re excited about Joshua’s.
Akeem Havens – Video games with Ben Roethlisberger
* Age – 14; Hometown – Flowery Branch, Ga.; Condition – chronic respiratory failure
* Wish: To play video games with Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger
* Signed a one-day contract with the Steelers and received personalized No. 1 game jersey from Steelers Chairman Dan Rooney at a press conference
* Participated in the Steelers’ 11-on-11 drills – scored on a hand-off from Roethlisberger
Patrick Munroe – A day with champion thoroughbred Smarty Jones
* Age – 9; Hometown – Greenlawn, N.Y.; Condition – hydrocephalus
* Wish: To meet Smarty Jones
* Patrick, who is blind and hearing impaired, traveled to Three Chimneys Farm in Kentucky to pet Smarty Jones and play with his foals
* Visited Churchill Downs to listen to the horses run and meet the jockeys
Alonso Fragoso – Playing baseball with the Cleveland Indians
* Age – 8 (7 when wish was granted) ; Hometown – Las Vegas, Nev.; Condition – lymphoma
* Wish: To be a Cleveland Indian for a day
* Spent a day with the Indians, hosted by MLB All-Stars Grady Sizemore and Victor Martinez
* Wore personalized Indians uniform, had his own locker, took batting practice, shagged fly balls and ate pre-game meal with the team
* Delivered lineup card to umpire at home plate and threw out the first pitch
* Signed autographs for fans post-game at players’ entrance
Everardo Soto – Playing soccer with Chicago Fire’s Cuauhtémoc Blanco
* Age – 14; Hometown – Houston; Condition – ganglioglioma (brain tumor)
* Wish: To meet MLS Chicago Fire star Cuauhtémoc Blanco (former Mexican National Team player)
* Traveled to Chicago with the Houston Dynamo on their team flight
* Joined Blanco for pre-game ceremonies on field, wearing personalized Chicago Fire gear
* Spent next morning with Blanco and Fire teammates at Toyota Park
Alexander Williams – Dunking with Shaquille O’Neal
* Age – 9; Hometown – Mobile, Ala.; Condition – acute lymphocytic leukemia
* Wish: To meet NBA star Shaquille O’Neal of Phoenix Suns
* Picked up by O’Neal and they proceeded to a luxury hotel in Orlando for lunch
* Wore Phoenix Suns jersey and played a game of P-O-N-Y at a local gym against O’Neal
* Learned some NBA moves from O’Neal
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Michael,
All of these stories were all told on ESPN SportsCenter a few weeks back. They were gripping.
Some but not all are here:
http://search.espn.go.com/make-a-wish/video/6
Make-A-Wish is truly a great organization!
Here’s another great way for bloggers to help Make-A-Wish. Spread the word that for every blogger that takes two minutes to write a short review of their website hosting company before 30/11/08, I’ll donate $2 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Write your reviews now at http://Wordpress-Hosting-Reviews.com