sunshine foundation®
The Original Wish Granting Organization
Sunshine Foundation's
sole purpose is to answer the dreams of chronically ill, seriously
ill, physically challenged and abused children, ages three to
eighteen, whose families cannot fulfill their requests due to the
financial strain that child's illness may cause.
Stories of Sunshine!
Braden's Dream
Braden is 11 years old and has a rare
genetic disorder. His family documented his dream trip to
Central Florida!
Alyssa's Dream
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 Minnesota 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' Story of
Sunshine Told by His Mom
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 Sandifer’s 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.
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...
"Thank you all so much for
the most memorable time of our lives! You made each one of us
especially Jordan-feel extra special rather than pitied because
of his disability, and that was the most magical part of this
whole experience. You have given my whole family extraordinary
examples of generosity and kindness to take from this
experience. Since we have benefited so greatly from receiving,
my children now want to experience the feeling you get from
giving and it is all because of everyone at the Sunshine
Foundation. May God bless each and everyone of you just how he
has blessed us with our three incredible children!" - Jordan's
Parents
Jordan is 14 years old and has severe
autism. His dream was to visit the Orlando attractions. Jordan and his family stayed in Sunshine's Dream Village!
Special thanks to the Southern Ocean Chapter for sponsoring
Jordan's dream through the Annual Fishing Tournament!
Quenton's Dream Told by
His Mom...
My family and I have just
returned home from an experience of a lifetime! How can I ever
say thank you enough, Sunshine Foundation. My son, Quenton is 12
yrs old and has Mitochondrial Myopathy, and Chairi 1
malformation. Quen has been in and out of hospitals for many
years now, and is adjusting to the lifestyle changes because of
his illness. He is such a great kid, so smart and funny. He
loves school, animals, and his video games. Quen has many
friends and is the "Go to Guy", when it comes to video or gaming
questions.
As Quen's mother I love everything about him
(of course). He is so brave, and has found ways to be completely
content with not being able to run around with his friends, ride
a bike, climb lots of stairs, and play sports. We have wanted to
do something for Quen for many years, something he would always
remember, or that would lead to opening a whole new world
to him. To believe, he can be anything he puts his mind to. Be
glad that your favorite subjects are science, space and social
studies.
Because of the Sunshine Foundation, and all of
their supporters, my son was granted a dream. The cottages were
just adorable. Very homey. My son was thrilled to walk into the
space theme cottage. He was very comfy in his space shuttle
for a bed. I would love to share just a few pictures of our
trip. Quen has wanted to be a zoologist for the last 5 years
now, so he wanted some hands on with Marine creatures. Well he
had a wonderful experience with a dolphin encounter, he also got
to snorkel with Rays, and tropical fish.
Every thing he had
ever dreamed came true in those few days we were there. I saw my
son laugh so hard his face hurt, his eyes were filled with
wonder and amazement. Quen felt special... he said, "mom, I
don't feel different, like when I'm at home. I feel special
now."
Please know without the Sunshine
Foundation, I may have never seen that look in Quen and his
fathers eyes as they played in the water, played putt-putt, and
just sat on the couch and played some one on one father- son
video games. I will always treasure that memory, and I know that
Bryan , my husband feels the same. These dreams build up the
children, true. It also builds up the family. Thank you again,
and may God Bless you all for what you do for others.
Sunshine Sends Michael to WWE
SummerSlam!
Michael's dream
came true when he went to CA to the WWE Summerslam Event! He is
16 and has Muscular Dystrophy. Michael shared his story with
Sunshine:
“Thank you so
much for the trip. I had so much fun and so did my dad. We
wanted to explore California a little, so we went to the walk of
fame and on a tour that took us through Beverly Hills, Bel-Air,
and Hollywood. It was amazing. We saw my favorite wrestler, John
Cena. At Summerslam we went back stage and met some of the
wrestlers and got autographs and pictures taken with them. I
can’t thank you enough. We had such a great time. And one more
time, thank you so much!”
Michael with Teddy Long, WWE General
Manager and WWE Professional Wrester, R Truth! Michael and his father with a WWE
Announcer! Michael meets John Morrison, WWE
Professional Wrestler!
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