To celebrate World Wish Day on April 29, Make-A-Wish America granted their 150,000th Disney wish for 16-year-old Mikayla from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Mikayla and her family were the Grand Marshals during the Festival of Fantasy Parade at Magic Kingdom in their own coach. On the back of the coach was Disney’s new license plate that will be available soon with proceeds going directly to Make-A-Wish Central and Northern Florida. The blue plate features the silhouette of Cinderella Castle. Details about when the plate will go on sale will be announced soon.
Through the sale of limited-edition commemorative 50th Anniversary license plates, the Walt Disney World Resort raised more than $1.5 million for Make-A-Wish of Central and Northern Florida.
“This is an incredible milestone moment in our more than 40-year relationship with Disney,” said Leslie Motter, Make-A-Wish America President and CEO. “We know that wishes have the transformative power to renew hope, uplift spirits and unite families. When you pair that with Disney stories, characters, and experiences, lives are forever changed thanks to the unmatched joy that’s delivered when it’s needed most.”
Mikayla, who began fighting cancer three years ago, and her family were introduced to Disney characters and then invited to stay in the Cinderella Castle Suite.
“We are so thrilled that Mikayla is able to have this opportunity to celebrate the journey that she’s been on,” said Mikayla’s mom. “You never anticipate they [your children] are going to experience a life-threatening situation, but it’s been amazing to see how much good can come from something bad. We get to create these wonderful new memories together and not focus on the ones that maybe weren’t so pretty.”
Mikayla is an aspiring singer who dreams of one day performing at Disney. Inspired by Mikayla, Disney is planning a “royal” performance this summer to top off the 150,000th wish.
World Wish Day & Make-A-Wish
Make-A-Wish Foundation has granted more than 520,000 wishes for children globally since 1980. Their wishes assist children with relieving traumatic stress, improving emotional well-being, creating a turning point in their treatment, giving strength to fight an illness, and promoting better health outcomes. This is done by providing memorable experiences and positivity in their lives.
World Wish Day is a yearly Make-A-Wish event that celebrates more than 40 years of giving life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses and bringing delight to their families. World Wish Day takes place on April 29, in honor of the first wish that inspired the creation of the nonprofit.
Disneyland celebrated World Wish Day by displaying a trio of new windows on Main Street, U.S.A. dedicated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. This is the company’s first window dedicated to a nonprofit company.
Last year, all Make-A-Wish children were dubbed the “Godchildren” of the Disney Wish cruise ship.
Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro was appointed to the national board of directors for Make-A-Wish America earlier this year.
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