“‘Would you like to build a snowman?’ If you asked five-year-old Brantley from Texas this question, the answer would be a resounding ‘Yes!’ While it may sound like a simple dream, since Texas doesn’t usually see much snow, it seemed like a lofty one for him, even more so because Brantley has a congenital heart disease.
On Dec. 11, 2019, however, the real Macy’s Santa and his two elves teamed up with Make-A-Wish to surprise Brantley and his family on his way to Colorado where there was plenty of snow for him to build his very own snowman, fulfilling his wish as part of the Macy’s Believe campaign. After a joy-filled plane ride where every passenger got gift bags from Macy’s, the family arrived in Breckenridge, Colorado where Santa and his elves helped Brantley build a snowman.
Brantley, who according to his mom had never actually seen snow, was blown away by the experience.
‘Well, I had to build a snowman because snowmen are my favorite,” Brantley said in an interview with Summit Daily. “All of it was my favorite part.’
This is just one example of the more than 330,000 wishes the nonprofit Make-A-Wish have fulfilled to bring joy to children fighting critical illnesses since its founding 40 years ago. Even though many of the children that Make-A-Wish grants wishes for manage or overcome their illnesses, they often face months, if not years of doctor’s visits, hospital stays and uncomfortable treatments. The nonprofit helps these children and their families replace fear with confidence, sadness with joy and anxiety with hope.
It’s hardly an outlandish notion — research shows that a wish come true can help increase these children’s resiliency and improve their quality of life. Brantley is a prime example.”
View the whole story here: https://www.upworthy.com/this-organization-is-giving-children-fighting-critical-illnesses-extra-hope-this-year