Local children get special wishes

Published 10:10 am Friday, October 21, 2011

Three local children are getting an unforgettable vacation thanks to generosity of others.

Seven year-olds Megan Foltz and Isaiah Adkins both of South Point and 6-year-old Josie Butcher of Ironton, three children with life threatening illnesses, are going to Disney World in Orlando, Fla. via the Make a Wish Foundation.

Patricia Hensley, a Make a Wish Volunteer from Bidwell, managed the children’s wishes. She oversaw 104 children getting wishes last year.

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“Their faces lit up and they got all excited,” she said.

Megan and her family left on their trip Oct. 14. Isaiah and his family will leave Friday followed by Josie Oct. 29. The trip will be for a week.

Disney World is a common wish among Make A Wish recipients.

“A lot of kids say ‘I want to go to Disney to see Mickey or Cinderella,” Hensley said.

The foundation is dedicated to making memories for each child and their familes.

“Every wish we grant gives a reprieve to the families,” Jenna Smith, marketing and communications manager for Make a Wish Ohio chapter said. “Its allows families to spend time together outside the walls of a hospital.”

Smith said during the last program year, which runs from September to August, the chapter granted 863 wishes, the most of any chapter in the country. The goal this year is to grant 950 wishes.

Make a Wish Ohio chapter covers Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

For more information about volunteering for Make A Wish, contact Tiffany Herron at 1-877-9474.