Have hope, and Make-a-Wish
This is the speech I was honored to present at last night's Make-a-Wish Cheers for Wishes Gala. I am not the most eloquent of speakers, but since I am a passionate writer, I decided to put pen to paper to help you envision how our family arrived here tonight. While I cannot convey to you what it feels like to be a wish child, I can tell you what it means to be a wish mom. Our family’s story is one of hope. Losing hope, then finding it in the most unlikely of places. The word rare is defined as something unusually good or remarkable. Yet, when you combine the word rare with the world illness, you quickly find yourself adrift, desperately searching for answers. In our daughter’s journey, we discovered many doctors were hesitant to admit they did not understand what was wrong with her. This behavior only compounded the frustration we experienced from not having answers. However, when it is your child who is sick, that once pointless frustration transforms into sheer determina