The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada's Wish-A-Thon returns
November 20th – December 23rd, 2014
PICKERING, ON, Nov. 18th, 2014 - Wish-A-Thon, an online holiday campaign in support of The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada, re-launches this week with an objective to grant more wishes this season than ever before. The website will feature the 12 Days of Wishes during which the moving and inspiring stories of 12 wish children will be between Thursday, November 20th and Tuesday, December 23rd.
The first wish story that will be revealed on Thursday will be Tyler's:
Just a few months shy of his second birthday, Tyler was diagnosed with Retinoblastoma. It was during a routine checkup with his pediatrician when he was referred to a specialist. He was diagnosed four days later. "It was extremely difficult for our family," Tyler's mom, Yasmine said. Tyler has endured many surgeries, including the removal of his left eye. Throughout all of his treatments however, he always had a smile on his face, and showed tremendous strength. When Tyler received news that he was granted his wish, he was ecstatic. Tyler's wish is to visit Disneyland to meet all of his favourite characters. "Tyler had his Disney cars every time he went into surgery. It made him really happy and took him away from what he was going through," Yasmine said. Tyler is counting down the days until he gets to meet all of his heroes.
Wish-A-Thon started three years ago in Quebec and has since evolved into a national campaign, telling the stories of wish children who are looking forward to having their wishes granted by the Children's Wish Foundation.
"Every December we get about 100 new children with a life threatening illness introduced to us to turn their wishes into reality. We are very excited about Wish-A-Thon this year to help grant as many of those wishes as possible." said Jason Evanson, Director of Development for The Children's Wish Foundation. Last year, Wish-A-Thon raised over $25,000 and this year's objective is to double that amount.
The Children's Wish Foundation encourages the public to visit www.wishathon.ca to view and share the stories through social media and to make a donation.
The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
Each year, thousands of Canadian children between the ages of 3 - 17 are diagnosed with a life threatening illness. Since 1984, The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada has worked tirelessly to grant exceptional wishes to over 21,000 children and their families.
This year, the Foundation expects to grant over 1,000 new wishes and is proud to have never refused a wish to an eligible child, and with the help of volunteers and generous donors, is able to grant nearly three wishes every day. Each wish is an individual adventure, carefully structured to meet the needs of a particular child and family. The Foundation is a national charity with chapters in every province and territory. Visit www.childrenswish.ca for more information.
Image with caption: "Tyler's wish is to meet all of his Disney heroes. (CNW Group/The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20141118_C5570_PHOTO_EN_8238.jpg
SOURCE: The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada
Note to Editors / News Directors: For additional information or to request an interview, please contact: Michelle Taylor, Manager, Community Development, Telephone: 647-725-6157, [email protected]
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