Information For Parents

What is the Make-A-Wish Foundation®?
The Make-A-Wish Foundation® helps a child and a family to navigate the stresses of a serious illness by fulfilling one personal, heartfelt wish for the child. The Foundation gives the child a magical, once-in-a-lifetime gift or experience -- an interlude of respite and delight in the midst of hospitalizations and treatment schedules, physical limitations, and the fear and disappointments of a life-threatening illness.

What is a "wish"?
A "wish" is a child's personal, heartfelt answer to the question: "If you could go anywhere, meet anyone, have anything you wanted or be someone special for the day, what would you choose? The Foundation is concerned that the wish: be age-appropriate, not interfere with treatment and recovery, and truly is the child's own wish, expressed as much as possible in the child's own words.

Must my child have a terminal diagnosis to qualify?
Absolutely not. Although the Make-A-Wish Foundation® children have life-threatening medical conditions, both parents and physicians would be reluctant to call the Make-A-Wish Foundation® if a child had to be pronounced terminally ill first. We would like a wish to be a source of hope, joy and courage; and we would like your child to have a wish experience at a point in the treatment when she or he is well enough to enjoy and benefit from the experience.

What if my child cannot communicate his or her wish?
If a child cannot communicate his/her wish, we will work closely with the family, as well as healthcare providers, to select a developmentally appropriate wish.

Must I wait for a doctor or social worker to suggest the Make-A-Wish Foundation®?
No. You are welcome to call us yourself. Sometimes it is the children themselves who call because a friend or a roommate has had a wish and it sounds "so cool." If a friend or relative of your family calls us, we will send the caller back to you. A parent or medical professional, with the parent's permission, must contact us to initiate the wish process. We will never invade your privacy by calling you first. We wait for a signal from the parents that NOW is the right time.

I don't want to raise my child's hopes, only to have them dashed.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation® has always served every medically qualified child. To be eligible for a wish, your child must:

-Be diagnosed with an illness or condition sufficiently life-threatening to enable the child's doctor to qualify him or her for a wish.
-Not have been granted a wish by any wish-granting organization.
-Be between the ages of 2 ½ and under 18.

If you live in another state or region of California, we will connect you to the appropriate chapter in your area. By the time we meet with your child, we will have determined that your child meets those three conditions of eligibility. Please note: we may be able to grant the wish of a child who is under the age of 2½. Please call Lori Steinman, Director of Program Services, for more information.

What if my child wants a trip, and he/she is in the middle of a treatment schedule?
We will never interrupt a treatment schedule for a wish trip. We contact the doctor immediately, both for medical qualification and for any warning that the timing of a particular wish would disrupt a treatment. The first priority for everyone is giving your child the best possible medical intervention. Treatment schedules can often accommodate family vacations, but if they cannot, a trip is a wonderful thing to anticipate. We can have your child's long-awaited adventure ready and waiting the moment treatment ends. Other wishes do not involve travel. Your child may have something else in mind like a new computer or puppy or bedroom furniture. We will also work to schedule this kind of wish at the best time for your child.

Are there financial considerations?
What qualifies your child for a wish is the child's illness -- nothing else. The Foundation does not require financial disclosures and is not a welfare-like program. Most wish families are facing the daunting financial challenges of medical treatment for catastrophic illness, and many are in desperate need. Others are saving every penny for an urgent transplant. Some working parents have lost jobs to long hospital vigils, or are trying to maintain an apartment near the hospital as well as a home elsewhere in the state. Still others know that their child has a special wish -- like going to the Super Bowl or meeting Michael Jordan -- that no amount of money could ever grant without other kinds of assistance. And we have learned that families in crisis are not able, either psychologically or financially, to plan and carry out a fantasy event for a child in the midst of other stresses. We believe every child should be encouraged to dream and should be able to make a dream come true. In a time when children have very little control over their lives or their bodies, a wish is something they can imagine and control in every detail. Asking your child to imagine his wish, moreover, is sometimes the most important part of the whole wish-granting process. A wish can be a practical device that opens, in an easy and natural way, a conversation about the things that are most important to your child at this particularly difficult time.

Who is involved in a wish?
It depends on the wish and the child's desires. The Make-A-Wish Foundation® always includes the entire immediate family. All the Make-A-Wish Foundation® activities are designed for siblings as well as the wish child. We know that a child's illness affects the entire family. A wish can provide at least one outcome that is positive and fun for everyone.

Must there be publicity on a wish?
No publicity will ever be sought without your permission and comfort.

What should I do if I want a wish for my child?
Please call our office at (800) 831-9474 or (559) 221-9474.