Wishes Really Do Come True!

Hi Ladies!  Well, our family just had an amazing experience - our son, Kevin, received Make-A-Wish and we went to Disney World!  When you hear Make-A-Wish, you may think terminally ill children....that isn't always the case.  Make-A-Wish grants wishes for children who have life threatening conditions, not just terminally ill children.  Our daughter, Courteney, had her Make-A-Wish back in 2006 to Disney World too!  So, let me start off by saying, Make-A-Wish wants to grant wishes!  If you know a family that has a child who may fall into one of these categories, tell them about Make-A-Wish...please!

When we arrived in Florida, I realized I hadn't done a very good job explaining to our friends and family what makes a Disney Make-A-Wish trip just so special...it's a place called  Give Kids The World!  Give Kids The World (GKTW) is the "resort" where families stay who are on a Wish trip.  It is magical, it is happy and I have never experienced anywhere else like it.  Click here to watch a quick video on GKTW!

The story of Give Kids The World begins with a little girl with a wish and the desire of one man to make that wish come true.
The little girl's name was Amy. Amy had leukemia and one wish - to visit the theme parks in Orlando. To facilitate Amy's wish, the request of a complimentary stay was made to a respected hotelier. As he had done many times before, the hotelier gladly obliged and Amy's wish was that much closer to being realized. Sadly, the remainder of Amy's travel plans took too long to arrange and her wish was never granted; Amy had passed away. Time simply ran out.
This unfulfilled wish inspired a man, the hotelier, to make a vow that no child in need would ever be failed again. That man was Henri Landwirth and his desire to ensure that Amy's story would never repeat itself is where the story of Give Kids The World begins.

We had the blessing of staying at Give Kids The World (GKTW) in 2006 on Courteney's trip as well. Families of Wish children are always welcome to come back and visit for a day when in Florida..so we did that in 2009.  Every wish child gets to put his or her name on a star that covers the ceiling and walls in the 'Castle of Miracles.'  Just take that in...each star you see represents a child...and this is only ONE of the rooms with stars in the Castle of Miracles!!

Nowadays, it is a computerized program that gives the workers at GKTW the coordinates of the child's star, so that they can always come back and find it.  When we went in 2006 for Courteney, it wasn't so computerized.  So, you'll see in the picture here that the volunteer had a few possible places

that Courteney's star could be based on when she had come to GKTW...the rest was up to her looking at each and every one in that area on a ladder.  But, it was found!  10 years later!  It was very moving to watch the dedication of this volunteer, who acted as though it was no big deal to search for Courteney's star.

That brings me to the volunteers....GKTW has about 8,000 volunteers!  How many organizations have 8,000 volunteers?  Usually if you have that many volunteers your organization is nationwide or world wide.  Guess what?  This a a 70 acre resort located in central Florida.  But, it is a cause that the community and Disney Theme Parks have rallied behind because of the lives that are changed through GKTW.  And when the volunteers come, they see that they are providing a blessing to children and families.  The blessing is that you get to leave behind the endless doctor appointments, therapy appointments, sicknesses, and struggles for one week. GKTW wants kids to be kids and have a week of miracles, hope, and fun.

How do they give miracles, hope, and fun to a child and his or her family?  Well for starters you stay for a week in one of 150 villas that are like little houses.  These villas are beautiful!  They are wheelchair accessible!  They will get you all the medical equipment you need to care for your child for the week.  Ty Pennington was just there a handful of months ago and renovated 70 of the original villas to make them as beautiful and up-to-date as the newer villas.  His renovations aired on Good Morning America!  Click here to watch what took place!  We stayed in one of the newly renovated villas!!  It looked like Ty Pennington and his unbelievable decorating sense had just been there! GKTW has an ice cream parlor that is open from 8a-10p every day, all day!  Why?  So kids can eat ice cream for breakfast, of course!!  Why would a parent allow their child to eat ice cream for breakfast?!! Because it's their wish!  It's one week to do the unthinkable, to live what is often the impossible!

The Mayor of GKTW world is a 6ft bunny, Mayor Clayton, and he does tuck-ins!  So, Courteney and Kevin (and Dan!!!) all received tuck-ins from the bunny who pulls up in his golf cart!

Boston Market is on the premises and they will deliver your meals right to your door or you can take it to-go as you rush off to Disney World!  There is an adapted playground that is a GIANT game of Candy Land becuase GKTW has a partnership with Hasbro games.  There is even a GKTW edition of Candy Land that can be purchased.  Every day, presents are dropped off to the Wish child and their siblings. There is a carousel that can accommodate two wheelchairs on it.  There is a movie theater.  Christmas is celebrated every week there with Santa, snow, and more!  There is a Perkins family restaurant that serves three meals a day to the families!  There is horseback riding!  There are two pools and a fun water park.  And everything is made to look like a fairy tale!  I promise you would find nothing else like it in all the world.  I don't have enough good to say about it.  It has blessed our family not once, but twice.

My cousin who is a nurse came with us to help care for Courteney for the week.  I was so excited for her to see GKTW and experience it.  And believe me, we all had our moments...moments you would just cry with unbelief and with joy....this place is filled with sick children...every child has a story...every child there has a medical journey that he or she is on, and it's not easy.   Yet, there is this ray of hope that shines and promises to give these kids an amazing week, and seeks to make the resort full enough that even if that child is too sick to go to Disney World, there will be enough to do at GKTW.  The unbelief comes in, when you just look around and recognize the thoughtfulness, energy, and heart that has gone into creating GKTW.  Our family is just one of 132,000 families who have stayed there from over 75 countries.

Make A Wish and GKTW not only give the child and family an experience of a life time, but they also creates memories.  This is a trip that we will be talking about for the rest of our lives, as we have the past 10 years with Courteney's Wish trip.

I would wrap this up by encouraging you to visit GKTW to take a tour if you are ever in Central Florida!  I would also encourage you to GIVE - this whole experience at GKTW and Disney World was FREE, yes FREE to our family!  You can support Boston Market, Perkins Family Restaurants, and Make-A-Wish or GKTW directly.  It is a worthy cause.


Whether the volunteers realize it or not, their heart is aligned with the heart of God as they serve these precious children and their families!

Many Blessings!

Christine