It was definitely an Evening of Wishes!

 This is one of those moments I can't wait to blog about...but then I don't know where to start.  I look forward to this party all year.  It was our second annual "Evening of Wishes" to raise money for Make-A-Wish, to grant wishes in our local area, and again contrary to all my last minute melt-downs, was a huge success!

Partly because of this guy, I have no doubt.  Jeff had it tough the last few weeks, as I read my and his to-to lists out loud hundreds of times a day.  Both of us being on the MAW Board is so fun, and I love that he loves MAW as much as I do.  His involvement and enthusiasm in something so special to me, well, I just don't know that I could put into words.  He is definitely my rock.  (Doesn't hurt that he cleans up well too. :)

 Ok, so the party.  This year we kicked it up a notch!  BAM!  And held it at Green Island Country Club, which (I think) is definitely one of the nicest places in town!  (and nearly broke the bank negotiating!)  It all turned out perfect!  We dined on salmon and steak, and the service was wonderful!

We had two wish families as our guests of honor. :)  Here are the Moseley's.  I met Daniel three years ago, and granted his wish shortly after to go to Disney World.  After three years of treatments for leukemia (ALL), next month will be his last maintenance chemo!  We are so excited!!  Daniel is a rockstar, and I love the strength and love this family shows in everything they do.

 The main event of the evening was our silent auction, once dinner and speeches were over.  It's amazing how the community steps up for our organization.  We had the most amazing items!  Here's a peek....  My favorites will always be the paintings we have from wish kids themselves of their wish experience, you'll see them mixed in the other items.  They're always the first to go, and I can imagine them all hanging proudly in someone's office or playroom to brighten their day, I know it would mine!

 We had gift baskets from doctors offices for free services, furniture, memberships to the Coca-Cola Space Center, concert tickets to Sugarland and Guns n' Roses, an AU autographed football, paintings, photography sessions, this awesome Char-Broil grill....I could go on and on!

 And of course, the ever popular item from last year, the Barrel of "wish" spirits, had to be on the auction block! 

 We even had a limited edition guitar from the Eagles!

 And a Tribute to Bobby Cox all our Braves fans wanted in their "man caves!"

 I am so grateful for the people who came out to support Make-A-Wish, some friends or co-workers, some new friends I met that evening.  All however, were there to make wishes come true!

 We loved our entertainment, and if you need a good two-man band, we give two thumbs up to the Tony Boloney Extravaganza with Rob Hall!   They were perfect!  And man, can they sing!

 Our other special guest for the evening was Emma (and her family).   Terri (with me there) and I had the honor of granting her wish last year to cruise to Jamaica.  Emma is graceful and hilarious and a joy to be around, and her attitude is positively infectious.  We asked her to speak at an Evening of Wishes, and tell us all what Make-A-Wish means to her.  After we got up next to her (when a few sweet tears begin to fall) for support, she captivated the crowd with the true spirit of our mission, which is to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy.  If anyone does, Emma has all that, and more.

 As we all dried our eyes :), my main man Daniel came up to lighten our moods and help me with door prizes!  This was his job for the night, and he was a champ!  He may not know double digits yet, but we worked it out together, and it was a big hit!  I think he's fallen in love with the mic, because his mother sent me a picture the next day of the stage he set up in their living room! :)

 I could, and truly want, to tell you every detail, about this evening.  Most importantly I suppose, is that we reached our goal, and raised $10,000 to grant wishes that night!!

None of this could have been done without the incredible Board members I have in Columbus, who continue to impress me with every meeting we have with their ideas and spirit.  Our sponsors for the evening made all of this possible, and from the tips of my toes to the bottom of my heart I thank you, as well as our friends and guests who came.  You have all made wishes come true. 

If you think about it, and I do all the time, it's a really simple thing.  All we want to do is make a child smile, make them laugh, and watch it trickle to their siblings, and parents, and wash away any negative for a day or two.  It hasn't happened in a while for sick kids, so our job is to make it.  And when it does, it is so infectious.... making a kid's wish come true.