Volunteers build my daughter’s dream
Las Vegas Review Journal
December 26, 2006
Dear Boss:
I’m not due back to work for a few days, but I wanted to tell you about something wonderful that happened to the Smiths.
When we were contacted more than a year ago by the folks at the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Nevada, Amelia was interviewed and asked what she wanted from the charity which specializes in granting the requests of children who have experienced major illness. Most kids can’t wait to take their families on an all-expenses-paid trip to Disney World. For others, a dream-come-true means hanging out with a favorite movie star or pop music icon, or becoming a major leaguer or entertainment superstar for a day.
Whatever it is, Make-A-Wish tries to grant it.
But then came Amelia.
When Amelia was diagnosed with her brain tumor more than two years ago, we began an odyssey that took us from Las Vegas to Phoenix and Los Angeles. Through all the surgeries and treatment, Amelia kept one goal in mind: Get better and return home.
As the months passed, that goal manifested itself in the dream of a playhouse of her own. But not just any playhouse. She wanted something special, something with curtains and room for sleepovers.
When Amelia informed the Make-A-Wish people of her request, they must have thought she had misunderstood them. You mean, she didn’t want to take the whole family to Disney World, or on a cruise?
No thanks, she said. But a playhouse would sure be nice. Her request grew more detailed by the day. Her dream gradually morphed from Tuff Shed to Trump Tower.
You can’t have a playhouse without popcorn, and for that you need a microwave. You can’t have popcorn with out something to wash it down, and for pop you need a mini-fridge. And on it went.
Back at Make-A-Wish headquarters, the team members must have wondered what they had gotten themselves into. But they began to network and made a connection with Focus Property Group and its LandTek subsidiary.
Once the volunteers met Amelia, it was all over. They set out to grant her wish, which had become even more complicated by the fact that she had lost the ability to walk. Of necessity, a playhouse would have to be wheelchair accessible with a pathway from the house.
The company officials’ goal was to give more than money. They wanted to give their time and attention to a charitable project, which isn’t easy when everyone already has hectic working and family lives. After penciling out a plan, they got busy.
When they signed on for playhouse construction duty, they went after the assignment like Marines. As the weeks went by, they fought wind, rain, sleet, snow and holiday pressure, but kept on working. They missed family dinners and football games, but they wouldn’t quit.
On Saturday, the job done at last, Amelia cut the ribbon on her clubhouse cabin and marveled at having her wish granted so perfectly. From the curtains to the flooring, everything was ideal. There was even a microwave and a mini-fridge.
They made a brave little girl’s dream come true just in time for Christmas.
It was a good day for the Smiths.
No one asked for recognition, so of course I can’t resist. Alphabetically, it goes something like this: Ahern Rentals, Lenny Badger, Jack Basset, Bob’s Construction, Peter Bressler, C&C Crushing, Jeff Davis, Focus Property Group, Frazee Paint, Gothic Landscape, Steve Kevish, LandTek, Jeremy McClain, Brian Moler, John Moler, Pavestone Corp., Ted Pfisterer, Rinker Materials, The Ritter Charitable Trust, James Seebeck, Maurice C. Seebeck III, Maurice C. Seebeck Jr., Sun Valley Electric Co., Cindi Sokoloff, Michael Sokoloff, Steven Sokoloff, Team Endeavor, Becky Wildman, and Shelly Wright.
On the wall of the playhouse, a plaque commemorates the gift and communicates the spirit of the giving with a quote from Dr. Maya Angelou. It says, “When we cast our bread upon the waters, we can presume that someone downstream whose face we will never know will benefit from our action as we who are downstream from another will profit from that grantor’s gift.”
Amelia shays she’ll even let me visit soon, as long as I promise to knock first and wipe my feet before entering her new abode.
As I write this, she’s trying to figure a way to have pizza delivered to the playhouse of her dreams.
