KENZIE WINSLOW

Make-A-Wish’s national program Kids for Wish Kids raised $465,000 from Colorado high schools last year alone. Mountain Vista High School has donated over $50,000 in the three years they’ve participated in the program.

Lauren Beede, Make-A-Wish Associate Director of Philanthropy and liaison to Mountain Vista, said, “Our average wish cost is $7,500, so students from Mountain Vista High have donated enough to grant more than six wishes for Colorado children with life threatening medical conditions.”

Joan Mazak, Make-A-Wish Colorado’s CEO, founder, and president, founded the Colorado chapter in 1983 after her 7-year-old daughter passed away from a liver condition. Now, over thirty years later her Kids for Wish Kids program is used as a model for other chapters nationwide to show what a successful program looks like.

“We are very proud of Mountain Vista and all that they do to grant wishes for kids like Jaidyn, Dakota and Asher who have life threatening medical conditions!” Mazak said.

Beede is also very proud of all Mountain Vista has done for Make-A-Wish. “We are honored that the students at Mountain Vista continue to choose to support Make-A-Wish Colorado,” Beede said.

Overall, Mountain Vista’s Wish Week has been very successful and our school’s efforts are noticed by the employees of Make-A-Wish.

“Thank you to everyone who has been involved in the planning of fundraising activities and to everyone who has financially supported our organization. We cannot grant wishes without the help of people like you!” Beede said.