I am excited to take on this year’s Trailblaze Challenge to help grant the one true wish for each eligible child with a critical illness.

The 28.3-mile hike is a physical challenge, for sure.  But the challenge of hiking those 28.3 miles is insignificant compared to the battle these kids spend years fighting.  So, I plan on doing the hike with the thoughts of those children, being the wind beneath my wings.

You may wonder how I know how difficult of a fight they have.  Most of you already know that I have personal experience with helping my daughter Krista through the fight of her life because, in 2003, she was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in her brain called medulloblastoma.  She was 7 years old at the time.  The cancer, while it changed her and her life, did not destroy her spirit, her love of people, the Lord Jesus, or her love of life.  She was blessed in so many ways and blessed us in countless ways.  She was granted her wish in 2005, a trip to Disney World.  I do not have words to describe the “lift” this gives a child and her family.  Those wishes help them get through the unceasing medical appointments, procedures, surgeries, and treatments like chemo and radiation.  It is the Make a Wish organization and donors, like you, that make these wishes come true.

Sadly, the cancer ultimately took Krista’s life when she was 11 years old but her legacy lives on in the people who knew her, love her, and miss her.  And she continues to make an impact on people she has never met, which is a blessing for all of us.

Finally, I want to mention that a friend of mine, who never met Krista, recently wrote, and sang a song inspired by the stories he heard. He created a video, which I am sharing for you to see. You can watch/listen to the video on YouTube by searching for “Change the world Krista Wolfe” or copy/paste the URL into your browser.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vzWGpVRvJ4

If you can, please give so we can grant wishes to kids who are fighting battles that most of us have never known.

Thank you!