By Delaney Osbourn
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Making a wish can be simple, but for the kids involved with the Make a Wish foundation it can be more special. Every year the Make a Wish foundation makes 315,000 children’s dreams come true. Children with life threatening illnesses can get granted their one wish with the help of the foundation. Children like Chi-Omega philanthropy chair president Gabie Gauthier’s brother get their one wish. “I actually got involved in Make a Wish when I was younger, because my brother,” Gauthier said. “When he was younger he was granted a wish.”
Gavin Gauthier was born with three birth defects on the right side of his heart, which made him have to have five open heart surgeries when he was younger. While he was recovering from all of the surgeries, his family received a call that their son would be granted his one biggest wish through the Make a Wish foundation. Gavin wanted to meet Spiderman, and that’s exactly what Make a Wish made happen at Disney World and Universal Studios. “Ever since then, my family and I fell in love with Make a Wish,” Gauthier said. “We saw the impact that it had on our family and I wanted to be apart of it.”
Even though Gabie never had a wish grant herself, she explained that she loves making children feel as special as her brother did when his wish was granted. Without Make a Wish, many children would lose the hope they need in order to continue fighting the different diseases they have been diagnosed with. The Make a Wish foundations motto is “Whatever odds, whatever obstacles, a wish granted makes any life better.” With the hope and inspiration that the Make a Wish foundations continues to spread, children of all ages can continue to smile confidently and comfortably through any obstacle they may go through.