Call Us: (518) 456-9474
Wishmaking Monthly
A Gala For All Airs This Thursday
On Thursday, Make-A-Wish Northeast New York will present a gala like no other. A Gala for All.

Yes, you are invited. And it's free.

The 22nd Annual Make-A-Wish Northeast New York When Stars Align Virtual Gala will air at 7 p.m. Thursday on the chapter's Facebook and YouTube pages. It will be immediately followed by an After-Party presentation featuring our favorite Gala band, Grand Central Station.

Our Gala, originally scheduled for March 28 at the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Springs, had been rescheduled for June 4 due to the coronavirus pandemic. In April, the chapter made the decision to pivot to an online Gala , the first of its kind for Make-A-Wish Northeast New York.

The Virtual Gala will feature inspiring wish stories , captivating testimonials, interviews, music and more. Of course, it wouldn't be a Gala without our auction , highlighted by premier packages such as vacation stays at a luxurious Mexican villa and the Trapp Family Lodge in Vermont. There is also a Florida boating excursion, as well as a wide range of other items . We are also offering great odds on a raffle for a Walt Disney World package, and there is the wine/liquor pull.

Just go to WishGala20.givesmart.com , where you can register for free. You can bid on auction items, buy raffle tickets and take part in the wine/liquor pull right now.

And donate. Please donate.

The pandemic has seriously impacted a series of our external events, making this Virtual Gala absolutely vital to our mission of creating life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. While most wishes are on hold right now -- more than 50 in our chapter alone covering the 518 and 838 area codes -- we expect to grant a record number of wishes in the coming year, once it is safe to do so.

We hope to see you on June 4th (virtually). Feel free to comment on our social media channels during the Virtual Gala.

Oh, and wear what you want. This is a #GalaForAll ... and we don't judge.
We Will Come Together as a Community
The Make-A-Wish mission is straight-forward and simply stated:

Together, we create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

It is a mission statement we live and breathe at Make-A-Wish Northeast New York, an ethos unaltered even by a pandemic. But over the past several months, as we have transitioned from our traditional live Gala to the uncharted territory of a Virtual Gala, I've pondered one word in that statement over and over:

Together ...

No, hundreds of us will not gather in formal attire and toast the power of a wish.

No, we will not assemble in a ballroom filled with giving people who are passionate about our mission.

Yes, going forward with an online version of a Gala, a first-time effort here (and one being replicated by other Make-A-Wish chapters), is fraught with challenges.

But with these challenges comes great opportunity.

The Make-A-Wish community is much larger than the several hundred people who can fit into a marbled hall. And the people who could be drawn to the Make-A-Wish mission by the power of social media is incalculable. (Please, in the days ahead, help us spread the word of the upcoming event.)

And this Gala is economically accessible to a wider range of people: It's free to "attend" (watch), and free to register for our wine/liquor pull, that great Walt Disney World raffle package, or bid on auction items.

Finally: Feel free to donate at whatever level you wish. This truly is a Gala For All.

More than 5 0 wishes are currently on hold here in our chapter. While wishes may be on hold at the present time, the hopes and dreams of our wish kids are not! We will not let their hopes and dreams become a casualty of this pandemic . Our wish kids are relying on all of us to fulfill the bright , shining hope of their upcoming wish es.

Even though we won't convene as community as we've done at past galas, we will still meet the challenges ahead on the behalf of wish kids and families. And we'll do so the same way we've always done it:

Together.

With immense gratitude,

Bill Trigg

CEO, Make-A-Wish Northeast New York