Recent Events

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The Carousel of Wishes–Going for the Brass Ring

In the months leading up to our annual fundraising gala, Make-A-Wish staff and volunteers spent countless hours brainstorming ideas, procuring auction items, securing sponsors, and inviting guests. Event Director Brian Roberts said, "It's like you stuff all of these ideas into a jar, and screw on the lid. Then the night of the gala, you open up the jar and watch all the pieces magically fall into place."

When the jar was opened on March 13th, a truly magical evening poured out. Volunteers, trustees, wish families and donors arrived for a glamorous evening dedicated to helping children share the power of a wish.

The Carousel of Wishes came to life with the help of the cast and crew from Teatro ZinZanni. Live carousel animals mingled among the crowd during the silent auction and jugglers and aerialists amazed children and adults alike. Bidders went wild for the beautiful works of art created by our wish children. Other hits at the live auction included a party at the McCracken Ranch, reservations to attend The Oprah Winfrey Show, and passes to New York Fashion Week runway shows.

Colin, Grace, and Alyssa shared the stories of their wishes and their battles with life-threatening medical conditions. There were few dry eyes in the house as Alyssa's dad spoke about the struggles their family has faced, and the joy that Make-A-Wish has brought to his daughter.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation^® of Alaska, Montana, Northern Idaho & Washington set an ambitious target of $750,000 this year. With everyone's help, we grabbed the brass ring, and even exceeded that goal—raising enough money to grant 150 wishes this year.

We are humbled and grateful for everyone who helped make The Carousel of Wishes a smashing success.

Fall Fundraising Breakfast Exceeds Goal, Raising Funds for Over 30 Wishes

Thanks to our event co-chairs, sponsors and donors our Fall Benefit Breakfast was a tremendous success, funding 30 future wishes! Thanks to generous community support, we will continue to grant extraordinary wishes for children battling life-threatening medical conditions.

For future sponsorship opportunities or to learn more about future events, please contact Brian Roberts at 206.623.5999 or broberts@nwwishes.org.

If you were unable to attend but would still like to donate, please click here.

Special thanks to our sponsors:
Hope
Macy's

Strength
Costco Wholesale
Fenwick & West
MCM
Royal Caribbean Tours
Seattle Mariners
Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Joy
Alaska Airlines
Associates of Russell Investments
Boeing
Celebrated Chefs
Dendreon Corporation
David & Marsha Ederer
GE Aviation
Mike Kirschner & Elisabeth Wright
Barry & Catherine McConnell
Nintendo of America
Bruce & Jeannie Nordstrom
Perkins Coie LLP
Satellite Alaska
Seattle Children's
Sweeny Conrad, P.S.
Doug & Ann Williams

Table Sponsors
Bank of America
Bellingham Cold Storage
Comfort Inn
Commerce Bank
Master Park
Menzies
Robert Half Legal
Seattle Group Ltd.

Walk for Wishes at Marymoor Park Raises More Than $75,000!

With a smile on his face, eight-year-old Cullen proudly sported his Walk for Wishes t-shirt as he anxiously awaited the start of the Foundation's inaugural 5k Walk for Wishes.

Cullen, who is living with heart disease, was excited to lead the charge alongside fellow Walk for Wishes featured wish kid Cassidy as 350 supporters followed behind.

Set to raise $45,000, there was a collective cheer when the grand total was announced. In its first year, the Walk raised more than $75,000 to date!

The top fundraising team was "Cullen's Crew" having raised more than $9,000 and the top fundraising invidividual was Debbie Hanan who took the highest honors for raising $3,750!

Special thanks to all the volunteers, participants and donors who helped to make the Walk a huge success!

If you didn't have a chance to donate but would still like to do so, please visit www.walkforwishes.kintera.org/washington.

Mark your calendars for next summer and join us for this great family-friendly event!

Event Sponsors: 100.7 The Wolf and Nintendo
Food Partners: Starbuck's, Noah's Bagels and Flying Saucer Pizza
Entertainment Partners: Robbie Walden and the Gun Slingers, Kimmy's Kloset, Jim Hancock (also known as "Rainshine" the Clown), Redmond Fire Department and all of our face painting volunteers!

KOMO 4 Problem Solvers Help Turn 14,000,000 Frequent Flyer Miles into Countless Smiles

We asked and the community more than delivered during our chapter's inaugural frequent flyer mileage drive on KOMO 4 last month. Thirteen hours, more than 40 volunteers and about 800 donors later, we are thrilled to share that we shattered our 1 million mile goal, having raised nearly 14 million!

The first phone rang around 6 a.m. and the calls didn't stop until after 7 p.m.

"It was incredible to see such an outpouring of support from the community," said Barry McConnell, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Alaska, Montana, Northern Idaho and Washington chapter president and CEO. "During the first three hours of the drive, we surpassed our original goal. It was amazing to see the number continually rise each hour."

These donations will translate into a minimum of 150 free airline tickets to send kids on the vacation of their dreams.

Special thanks to KOMO 4 News, our volunteers and all the donors whose support helped to make wishes take flight! If you have unused frequent flyer miles that you would like to donate, please contact us at 800.304.9474 or download and complete the donation form.