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Make A Wish Foundation Pakistan

Dr Nida Amir is a dental surgeon by profession. She regularly writes reviews and articles for the magazine.

Each year in Pakistan, children are unfortunately diagnosed with life-threatening medical conditions. Thanks to advances in medical and diagnostic technology, many are now being cured though others have their lives prolonged for many years, while sadly some lose their battle.

Make-A-Wish Foundation® Pakistan steps in to assist these children and their families by providing an avenue for hope and strength.

By focusing on the positive, Make-A-Wish Foundation Pakistan brings magic and joy to these children each year by granting their most cherished wish. This is an experience that the children, their parents and siblings look forward to, often holding on to their experience as motivation in tougher times.

From the magic and power of having their most cherished wish granted, these children are given hope, strength and much joy.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation® originated in the United States in 1980. It grew from the dreams of a seven-year-old boy named Chris Greicius from Phoenix, Arizona who had Leukemia and his greatest wish was to be a policeman.

Chris’s mother along with the larger community moved heaven and earth to make his dream come true. Chris was sworn in as the first and only honorary Arizona Highway Patrolman in the state’s history. He was given a custom-made uniform, helmet, a police badge and a helicopter ride. The young boy’s delight in having his wish granting inspired the group who helped to make his dream come true realize there were other children like Chris who could benefit from their wishes being granted. Their inspiration was the beginning of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Make-A-Wish® Pakistan is part of the largest non-profit wish granting organisation in the world, serving in over 33 countries with international affiliates on five continents (Make-A-Wish International®). Since inception in 1980, Make-A-Wish® has helped make over 225,000 wishes come true for children around the world.

This organisation is determined to make terminally ill children’s wishes come true; in Pakistan approximately 10 children’s wishes have been granted so far since their inception earlier this year. The average wish in Pakistan costs only few hundred dollars, which surprises the American and European community as their children’s wishes cost thousands of dollars to grant. Our terminally ill children wish for the smallest possible things like a mobile phone or a colour television, as they are bed-ridden. Or a bicycle if they can walk, while the American and European children’s wishes include trips to Disneyland, meeting former heads of state etc.

In India this orginisation is very active and has actually granted hundreds of wishes in the past few years, with celebrities like Shahrukh Khan and other bigwigs of the Indian film industry on their board of directors. No one can see a child suffer, and this organisation grants their small wishes. So far children in Pakistan have wished to be dressed up as fairies and princesses, owning a biycle, a colour TV, and a mobile phone. These wishes are very small and easily grantable as compared to wishes of children abroad.

Please do visit their website www.makeawish.org.pk and see if you can make a difference.

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