sunshine foundation®
                 The Original Wish Granting Organization

Bradley's Dream

Christopher's Dream Village Dream

"Our trip was awesome. My children did not want to leave. They wish they could live at the Dream Village!" Mom of Christopher, Age 15 with cerebral palsy



Kaylin's Dream Village Dream

Meet Sunshine Foundation's first Dream Village Dreamer in 2013! Kaylin is 6 years old and diagnosed with arthogryposis. Her dream was sponsored by the RunWalkBark for Dreams!



Raymond and Sanaya's Dream!

10 year old Raymond and 5 year old Sanaya, both with Spastic Quadriplegia, enjoyed 5 beautiful days at the Sunshine Foundation Dream Village along with their parents. "Thank you for making us feel at home, we all had a blast!"

Jimmy Visits the Dream Village!

Jimmy, 18 years old with cerebral palsy, recently had his dream of a family trip to the Dream Village and Central FL attractions answered! His mom said, "We were able to enjoy our vacation together because we were all together under one roof and had a great time!"




Mikey Meets the Pittsburgh Steelers!

 Mikey is 6 years old, is autoimmune diffident, and has severe trachea bronchial malacia, asthma, and severe allergies, which requires him to use a nebulizer. He receives IVIGinfusions every four weeks, weekly injections of methotraxate, and must take numerous daily medications to manage his diagnosis. He was hospitalized twice during last school year, but his family says his personality does not let his illness keep him down.

His favorite activity is football. The Steelers are his favorite team because “they have a lot of wins and Superbowl championships!”  Mikey’s dream was to meet the Steelers, a dream that was recently made real. Sunshine Foundation sent Mikey to Pittsburgh to meet his heroes! He was able to meet multiple players. Mikey was lucky enough to attend a practice where he met the team and also attended a game the next night. He says, “It was awesome. I had a hard time getting the smile off my face!”
Thank you to the Pittsburgh Steelers for making this dream come true and providing tickets for Mikey and his parents. He most definitely will never forget this dream come true!

The Steelers were so generous and gave Mikey Steelers brand hat, wrist bands, gloves, towel, autographed football, and a team photo. He also is seen wearing Ben Roethlisberger's jersey in the photos above!

 

Shea's Big Discovery at the Dream Village


"Shea wandered out into the pool supported by my husband. That's when she made her big discovery. She was able to walk from one side of the pool to the other. Not swim, or float, but actually take steps and walk through water. You have never seen a child more joyous than She at that moment when she could take a few unassisted steps, fully supporting her weight for the first time!"
 Read Shea's Footsteps - ILOTA





Nyshia Participates in Parade



Nyshia is 9 years old and diagnosed with Down syndrome. Thank you Universal Orlando Resorts for giving Nyshia and her family the opportunity to participate in the parade. They had a blast!


Zac's Dream

Zac is diagnosed with cerebral palsy. Sunshine Foundation sent Zac and his family to a Nascar race.
He was lucky enough to meet his favorite driver, Carl Edwards, which made the day that much more special! Zac got to experience everything that goes into a Nascar Race. He even got to get in early and see the cars being prepped and doing their practice laps before the start of the race!
Read more Dream Stories like Zac's!

 Alyssa is 10 and sustained a profound spinal cord injury resulting in permanent paraplegia. Sunshine Foundation provided Alyssa with an adaptive bike! Her dream was sponsored by long time friend of Sunshine Foundation and board member D. Ross Fischer.
"Alyssa is so excited to have a bike and can't wait for warmer weather to invited all her friends over to ride bikes together. Having the ability to get outdoors and socialize with friends is going to bring her so much happiness. We are so grateful for you making this dream come true!"

Jonathan's Dream
   
Jonathan is 7 years old and has Down Syndrome. Sunshine Foundation provided funds for his family to purchase adaptive equipment.  This special dream was sponsored through
Sunshine Foundation's 35th Anniversary!

Nick's Dream

Sunshine Foundation, members from its All Volunteer MN Dream Catchers Chapter and neighbors from throughout the Baldwin, MN area will join together this week end to make a young boy's dream to sit outside on his back porch and watch his family's goats and chickens come true. Just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday! Read more about Nick and his dream here!



Tom's Mom
"You've given him lots of smiles!"



Aiden and Parents at the Dream Village
"There's been a lot of no's, so it was nice to hear a yes."


Kyah's Dream


Joey's Dream "Yes, I'm Happy!"


Sean's Dream Told by His Family!


Michael's Dream on CBS3!

Alyssa's Story Told by Her Mom!

I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you again. Although it doesn't come close to doing justice. Alyssa has been through so much and has so much to face. Every trip we have ever taken has been about doctors and hospitals. A lot of the out of state medical expense is not covered so we are buried in debt and have a hard time keeping a roof over our heads, so to give her such an amazing gift and amazing memories ...well it just wouldn't happen. I have never seen her so animated and happy and even though she was hurting she smiled EVERY SINGLE MINUTE! We feel beyond blessed and we thank God for the Sunshine Foundation and all those that contribute. Please let everyone know , you are making such a huge difference to families and you are amazing! The Village was so nice and everything we needed was there .I cant say enough .We are humbled and so grateful and we thank God for you and will continue to.
 Love and Appreciation, Mary Kelly and Alyssa

　P.S. Included a pic of Alyssa and then Kelly said to send you a pic of the snow we came back to!

Lucas was 4 months old, barely 12 lbs when I adopted him. I thank God every day for my wonderful son. Lucas is now 10 years old, 4'6' and over 80 lbs. And as gorgeous as ever (not that I'm biased in any way!) He's sweet and loving and despite his multiple disabilities (cerebral palsy, a severe seizure disorder, reflux with Sandifers Syndrome, apraxia and PDD-NOS), he is still a happy-go-lucky- kid. We've had some rough times over the years, but always managed to get through them.

Lucas loves Mickey Mouse, who really makes him laugh. He wanted to meet Mickey, but as a single mom with only a teacher's salary to support a family of four, this was not a request I could fulfill. That's when God smiled on us and I found out about the Sunshine Foundation, which helps fulfill the dreams of children with severe illnesses or disorders.  We tried our luck and we got the trip of a lifetime to Disney World. The expenses were paid for Lucas, his grandparents and me, and I mean expenses such as airfare, car rental, accommodations, food, Disney Theme park tickets and even souvenirs! We went over Mother's Day Weekend and stayed at the Sunshine Foundation's Dream Village cottage. Our cottage had a nursery rhymes theme, with 3-D decorations, magic mirrors and even a giant mushroom!

We spent one day at EPCOT and two at the Magic Kingdom. When we visited the Magic Kingdom on our first day, I really don't know whose smile was the biggest; it was such a thrill for us all. Unfortunately, the elusive Mouse was very much in demand that we had a hard time getting to meet him. It wasn't until our last night there when we finally got our chance. The look in Lucas's eyes when he first saw Mickey will be one I'll remember forever! He was a bit uncertain about what to do and looked to me for guidance.

I have never seen my son look more like a "typical" kid than at that moment..
Fortunately, Mickey Mouse knows sign language too and when Mickey saw me sign to Lucas it was okay to go over, Mickey signed to him as well and that broke the ice-they hugged and everyone cried.

In today's times, with economic problems everywhere and our own financial and medical difficulties, it was such a great treat to have this dream come true. I have been lucky enough to have had my own dreams realized and I'd like to make other folks aware of the Sunshine Foundation. Perhaps there's a child out there who has a dream that the organization can fulfill or maybe someone will consider making a donation so they can continue to bring smiles to children's faces.

God bless.
Celeste and Lucas
 
You can give other children this amazing dream experience by donating here!

Jeremiah's Story of Sunshine Told By His Mom

Jeremiah is 9 years old and from Hyattsville, MD. He has cerebral palsy. Jeremiah's dream came true when Sunshine Foundation sent him and his family on a dream come true trip to Disney World. The family stayed in the Elf Cottage at the Dream Village. His mom shared this with Sunshine,
"Jeremiah has never been on an airplane or out of town before. He loved the plane and seeing all the sights. This was an experience of a lifetime and he was happy the entire time. This dream brought Jeremiah out of his shell. I have never seen him so happy, playful and relaxed before. Guess he needed a vacation from all he deals with having cerebral palsy. Thank you for making our family's dream for Jeremiah come true!"  

Jordan's Dream Comes True...