WishLife
Make-A-Wish® Northern Alberta
How Tristan’s wish inspired his entire family
T
ristan, from Edmonton, was six years old
when his wish was granted. Tristan is homeschooled and, at the time, his family was living
on a farm outside of Camrose. When asked
what his biggest wish was, he excitedly said
“Stickers!”. Scott, Tristan’s wish grantor, told him
to think bigger and he responded by saying
“a meal at Wendy’s or a $20 bill”. This little boy
had no idea that he would soon be travelling
to Walt Disney World ® to have a life-changing
experience with his entire family, as well as,
thousands of stickers, a burger from Wendy’s
and a lucky $20 bill.
Tristan’s entire family wrote to thank
Make-A-Wish® for creating a magical
experience – here's what they had to say:
“Dear Friends at Make-A-Wish: I had a
really good time at Walt Disney World ®.
I hope I can do it again next year with my
Mom and Dad. I had lots of fun on Space
Mountain, and all the really fast water rides,
and all the fast roller coasters. I will remember
the Tower of Terror forever. The candy was
amazing. The Spiderman 3D thing was really
fun too! Thanks for all the fun I had. Thanks
especially to Scott (my wish grantor) for all
my presents… The best part is, I still have
10,000 stickers.”
Love, Tristan
“Being able to see our grandparents,
and be with our family and stuff, was pretty
amazing… Thanks,”
Jordon and Mac (ages 13 and 14)
“Thank you
for sending us to
Walt Disney World®!
It was so much fun!
Before we learned
that Tristan had
no working kidney,
I was just a lazy
gamer. All I really
liked to do was play
video games, but
that kind of woke
me up. I started
being way less lazy
and I’m trying to get
everything out of life that I can. The trip definitely
helped me get over how annoying my sister was.
I think it was because we were interacting more,
like with salamander hunting and swimming
and things like that. It also helped us pull the
family together. . ., we got to spend more time
with each other.”
From Dylan (age 11)
“Before Tristan got sick, he was the kind
of person who did flips and stuff. But now,
he’s not as much of a flip man. I think that
going to Walt Disney World® brought our
family back together more. After Tristan got
sick, my brothers went to friends a lot and
work, but since we went to Florida, we
have been more together. So thank you
for Disney World!”
From Selah (age 9)
LETTER FROM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CATHY GABUCCI
In the short time that I have been with
With their dedication it was possible to
Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta, I have
make dreams a reality, offering magic and
been fortunate enough to celebrate
joy for the special children and families
many milestones but most especially
that we serve. We are embarking upon
our 10th anniversary. As we look back
exciting times and we welcome all of our
on a decade of wishes, we would like to
old friends and new friends to join us in
extend our thanks to all those that came
making the next ten years just as memo-
before who made it possible to grant over
rable as the last ten in assisting wish
300 wishes across Northern Alberta.
children and their families.
“Thank you for adding so much joy to our
childhood…”
River and Elijah (ages 1 and 3)
“To Scott and the Make-A-Wish team:
When I think back to this year, I hope I will
always think of you. You stood with us, during
the most difficult time of our lives, and you made
sure we didn’t give in to despair. You reminded
us that there are a lot of good things to be
thankful for… that there are amazing things
happening to us as a family. I know we haven’t
shown it nearly as much as we’d like to, but we
will treasure the input you’ve had in our lives,
forever. We only hope that someday, we can
pay this forward, and bless you even a fraction
as much as you have blessed us. For Glenn,
Jordon, Mac, Dylan, Selah, River, Elijah and
especially Tristan, I thank you from the bottom
of my heart” – Trish
Make-A-Wish® Northern Alberta
16007-118 Ave.
Edmonton, AB T5V 1C7
Telephone: (780) 444-9474
Toll Free: 1 866 944-9474
Fax: (780) 489-9477
www.makeawish.ca
Special Event Update – Highlights from our previous ’08 events
2008 St. Valentine’s Day Hair Massacure,
February 13 & 14, West Edmonton Mall
Funds raised exceeded everyone’s expectations.
Our chapter received $440,000 from this amazing
and emotional event that celebrates cancer
survivors, is an expression of support for those in
treatment and honours those who did their best
to battle their cancer courageously. Volunteers
buzzed about accepting pledge money (and
counting it!), directing school groups, and so
much more while stylists shaved hair off of more
than 1,300 heads while entertainers performed
magic acts, hypnotized a few guests and provided
toe-tapping music for all to enjoy.
Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day,
April 29, West Edmonton Mall:
Volunteers gratefully accepted donations and
thanked all the ice-cream eaters who contributed
over $1,300 towards our cause. Spiderman and
Wolverine even dropped by to entertain the
after-dinner diners, too! Thank you to Lisa
and all the staff at Ben & Jerry’s
Sweet Dreams Day:
This year Boston Pizza secured over 31 Edmonton
and area restaurants to donate proceeds from
desserts to Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta.
Addison, our wish ambassador/wish child for the
day, along with his family and classmates, enjoyed
a party at one of the locations. Spiderman and
Wolverine did double-duty and visited Addison’s
friends on the same day. Boston Pizza raised
$8,000, meeting their goal to participate in the
Adopt A Wish® sponsorship program.
Tenth Annual Make-A-Wish Golf Classic,
Friday, June 6, Windermere Golf and Country Club:
Waterloo Ford and the Edmonton Journal sponsored our annual golf tournament. Volunteers
came to the fore to hole-spot, interact with wish
child Nathan and his brother Tomas at the putting green, and to oversee the auction and so much
more. Wish child Hannah brought 130 grown men
to tears with her powerful talk describing how her
wish impacted her and her family. The day was
a success in every way – bringing in substantial
revenues, weather co-operating (the rain held off
until the banquet began thankfully) and overall
a great game day with many smiling faces and
happy memories to cherish.
5th Annual August Blackout,
August 16 & 17, Castrol Raceway:
Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta held a very
unique event where black smoke filled the air
from the fumes of diesel truck racing. This year
jet cars were part of the show as well. NADP
(North American Diesel Performance) sponsors
this event every year. Wish kids enjoyed a ride
down the quarter mile with racers after eating
a yummy pancake breakfast. NADP generously
donated a portion of the funds to keep the wishes
“fuelled” too!
Upcoming Events – check out
www.makeawish.ca for more details!
48 Hour Ride For Wishes,
September 19 – 21:
This is an exciting new event for Make-A-Wish
Northern Alberta. Corporations around the city
are setting up stationary bikes with teams of
ten “spinning their wheels” to raise money to
help us continue to create hope and happiness
for children with life-threatening illnesses.
Volunteer Profile – Dana &
Dylan, Wish Grantors
Dana and Dylan are granting a wish to
a young man named Jonathan. Jonathan
loves anything to do with cars so it was
an easy match to pair him up with Dylan
who is a local NASCAR racer and Dana
who recently became a NASCAR Official!
When Dana was asked, “What
would you wish for if you could wish
for anything?” her response was a
wonderful display of compassion!
“I honestly don’t know. After I met Jonathan,
things in my life seemed so much less
important. He has changed my outlook on
life and I could say I’d love to travel and
see the world, but after meeting Jonathan it
doesn’t seem important anymore. I realized
that I need to live each day as it comes to
me and any hurdle that I have to jump,
there’s someone out there with a bigger
hurdle to jump. My life is still important, but
some of the things in it aren’t as important
as they used to be. It’s amazing to be able
to help fulfil someone’s wish and help put
a smile on his or her face.”
Blush Christmas Concert,
November 2008 (Date TBD):
An annual event featuring Krista Scoggins and
her band, Blush. Local entertainers participate
in an old-fashioned, family-oriented variety
show that reminds concert-goers the holidays
are here again!
RCA Christmas Concert,
November 30, 2008
The Royal Canadian Artillery band does an
annual concert at the Winspear Centre in downtown Edmonton. Two of the members are wish
parents who inspired this incredible partnership.
The program of brass band music that creatively
re-tells a Christmas classic story is unique and
enjoyable for the whole family. It’s a show you
don’t want to miss!
Dylan & Dana
“Ethan’s wish was like an important
potion that had been created for
him to ensure he had the time of
his life. For one whole week, life
Volunteer Profile
This year, Arlene celebrated her tenth anniversary as a volunteer with Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta!
Arlene is a bubbly, vivacious person who radiates compassion and fun at the same time. She has
worked for nine and a half years as a program coordinator for a charitable foundation that provides
hot lunches to students in high-needs inner city schools. Arlene supervises volunteers and also interacts
with the students, sitting with them to encourage them to eat their lunch and share their day.
focused on him and his total happiness with no medical appointments
or stress, nothing but pure joy and
so many smiles – it brought tears
to my eyes many times.”
Wish Child Ethan’s mom
A decade ago, after becoming a widow, Arlene was looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity
to help her move forward during the grieving process. Her interest was in helping children and
families in particular. A friend of hers told her about the Golf Classic Make-A-Wish was holding –
Arlene has not missed one golf tournament since!
Arlene has volunteered for us by making quilts for the kids, helping at Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Days
and a special event at Harvey’s, cleaning the office and hopes one day to grant a wish, too.
2006 stands out for Arlene for a favourite special memory of the Golf Classic. Watching then,
Executive Director Eldon Johnson, drive the wish children around in the golf cart, introducing them
to the golfers and seeing the kids’ smiles warmed her heart and it’s a memory she treasures to this
day. Hearing the wish children speak each year at the banquet about how the power of a wish
impacted them individually and as a family inspires her beyond measure.
Long-term volunteers are becoming a bit of a rarity in Canada – we are so proud of Arlene and
delighted during our tenth anniversary to acknowledge her support!
“I think my wish will, in fact, last
forever in my heart.” Six-year-old
wish child Amy, said at home after
her wish to bake cookies with
Cookie Monster was granted