Sunday, April 23, 2023 | Special Advertising Section 1 R 34 SPONSORED CONTENT PROVIDED BY MAKE-A-WISH ALASKA AND WASHINGTON Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington volunteer Denise Laevastu never thought an email would change her life. But that’s just what happened. The wish-granting volunteer kept seeing the same wish kids’ names in the emails sent by Make-A-Wish staff asking volunteers to sign up to grant their wishes. Denise noticed a pattern -- the families who only spoke Spanish waited longer for their child’s wish to be granted because the organization didn’t have enough bilingual volunteers. “It broke my heart, and I thought ‘I need to do something,’” Denise says. “So, for Christmas I asked for Spanish lessons.” Over the course of several years, Denise pored over curriculum and studied with a tutor to learn Spanish so she could help tighten this gap. “When I heard that Denise was learning Spanish to help grant more wishes, it brought tears to my eyes,” says Melissa Arias, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington, the nonprofit that grants wishes to children with critical illnesses. “Volunteers like Denise are the lifeblood of Make-AWish and without them, the organization can’t fulfill its mission or vision for a wish for every eligible child. That’s why are so grateful to them every day of the year, and especially this month as it’s National Volunteer Appreciation Month.” At Make-A-Wish, every child is paired with a volunteer team of two people who meet with the families and help to plan and in some cases facilitate the wish. The wishes can range from dream vacations to puppies to celebrity meetings to shopping adventures. And even wishes to have a quinceañera like Joanna Changing the community one wish at a time Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington helps create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses during their darkest days. Whether you are an individual donor, corporate sponsor, fundraising advocate or volunteer, your generous support transforms lives, one wish at a time. Learn more at wish.org/akwa. dreamed. Wish alum Joanna eagerly looked forward to her 15th birthday celebration. In Spanishspeaking countries, this special day signifies that the celebrant is transitioning to womanhood. But at times Joanna didn’t know if that day would ever arrive. She was battling cancer and was hospitalized. Still, she imagined her wish (having a quinceañera) coming true and bringing her hope and joy. That got her through the hard times with her treatments. One of the highlights was shopping for the dress. Denise and her wish-granting volunteer partner took Joanna and her family to find her dream gown and the memory is forever etched in her mind. “She was transformed when she tried on that dress,” Denise says. “Tears streamed down her face, tears of happiness and joy.” “This is exactly what I had envisioned for my quinceañera,” Joanna says. Denise’s motivation to learn Spanish changed Joanna’s life. It also led to a nomination and an award win as she was named Volunteer of the Year in 2022 by Make-A-Wish America. “Volunteering certainly benefits nonprofits and strengthens our local communities, but it also has a huge impact on the volunteers themselves,” says Melissa. “Simply put, volunteering is good for you!” Volunteerism is known to support mental and physical health and offers people a point of connection with others who share a common interest. Being a volunteer allows you to explore new interests and may even lead you to a different career path. If helping others is of interest, there’s no time like the present to look for your own volunteer opportunity and Make-A-Wish would love to have you. “There are currently about 600 kids waiting for their wishes in part because we don’t have enough volunteers,” says Melissa. Make-A-Wish offers online volunteer training on-demand so it can easily fit into schedules when it’s right for them. Volunteers typically work on two wishes annually and the average wish is completed within 6-9 months. Most volunteers spend 1-2 hours a week working on their wishes. “Make-A-Wish offers people the unique opportunity to directly interact with wish kids and families, so our volunteers often cite that as one the reasons why they love working on wishes,” says Melissa. Make-A-Wish is recruiting English-speaking wish-granting volunteers, as well as bilingual volunteers. But there are many other volunteer opportunities available from skilled tradespeople needed for construction wishes to airport greeters to send and welcome wish kids at the airport to student interns. No special skills are required to attend Make-A-Wish’s special events, donate frequent flyer miles or cash, or engage with them on social media. Denise Laevastu and wish kid Jonas with his new wish pup, Sugar Bun Bonnie. (Denise Laevastu) Donate today! Wish-granting volunteers Amy Morris (far left) and Denise Laevastu (far right) with wish recipient Joanna (center). (Ana Karen Co)
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