“We create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses and our vision is to grant the wish of every eligible child,” says Julie Hirota, president and CEO of Make-A-Wish Northeastern & Central California. “A wish can be anything from a she-shed to an accessible play structure to meeting a celebrity or sports star. The child determines the wish, and we do all we can to make it come true.”
This Make-A-Wish chapter, one of 58 nationwide, was established in 1983 by Frank Ramos and other dedicated founding members and led to the 2009 creation of The Wishing Place in Sacramento. The Wishing Place is where children and their families begin their magical wish journey. All wishes are granted locally with local funding.
The chapter celebrated 40 years and its 10,000th granted wish in 2023. Hirota, who took the leadership role in May, has a track record of elevating nonprofits to the next level and looks forward to helping Make-A-Wish reemerge from pandemic-era limitations that disrupted many wishes. She says, “Due to health mandates, travel restrictions and an abundance of caution, we were unable to fulfill wishes for some medically fragile children and are now tackling the backlog as well as the growing need.”
Statistically, a child’s life is jeopardized with a diagnosis of a critical illness every 20 minutes. By creating hope, wishes are part of the healing journey and each year, more than 300 kids qualify for wishes with our local Make-A-Wish chapter. Those kids, in addition to the nearly 600 kids currently waiting for wishes, are the focus of the organization’s efforts.
“Fulfilling each child’s wish is essential for our chapter,” confirms Hirota. “We’re able to grant wishes thanks to our community’s generous donors — everyday people who care about kids with critical illnesses and who recognize how wishes improve health outcomes.”
Make-A-Wish will strive to grant 1,000 wishes within the next two years and invites the community to help them achieve that goal at their black-tie fundraising event Wine, Wishes and a Little Bit of Whiskey on April 4, 2025.
