Wish Week, an opportunity for high schools across Colorado to raise money for Make-A-Wish Colorado, is a well-known and respected event among the Eaglecrest community. That being said, those who aren’t involved in the planning have very little exposure to the preparation that goes into making this week successful. Since it’s just around the corner, it’s a great time for Raptors to take a peek into the behind-the-scenes of Wish Week 2024 and gain a deeper understanding of just how important community engagement and donations are to the beneficiaries of Make-A-Wish Colorado.
EHS Student Council, Positive Impact, and Leadership Academy are all heavily involved in making Wish Week successful, and while Wish Week is from February 12th-16th this year, the planning begins months in advance.
“We usually meet our wish kid before Winter Break,” said Activities Director, Melissa Laferrera. “When we get back from Winter Break, that’s when we start to plan out the nitty gritty details.”
Jayda Ward, EHS Junior Class President, revealed that those nitty gritty details are executed through committees, allowing for students to focus their attention on the many different moving parts of Wish Week.
“I’d say our committee work is what prepares us the most and being able to divide and conquer and come back together as one,” Ward said. “We have about eight different committees, whether it’s spirit days, or restaurant nights, which is the committee that I served on.”
Planning five consecutive days full of fun is no easy task, and for Ward, catering to the EHS students has proven to be the most difficult part of planning Wish Week.
“The hardest part is how the student body will perceive our spirit days, kind of like homecoming and everything, except this is far more important I’d say because we’re raising money for a cause,” said Ward.
Laferrera has a slightly different perspective, as she views the challenge of customization certainly an obstacle, but one that motivates and excites her.
“I would say there’s nothing really hard about wish week in terms of getting students to want to give back to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, that part is easy. The challenge for Wish Week is making each Wish Week different because each kid is different,” Laferrera said. “We try to customize the week around the kid. I don’t think it’s hard, it just makes it more exciting. Just trying to stay creative and clever and really try to do some cute things to show our kid that they mean a lot to us and to the Raptor Community.”
Laferrera’s favorite part of this impactful week comes to fruition when the EHS leadership classes decide how they want to introduce EHS’ wish kid that year, as that is another aspect of planning that they try to diversify.
“My favorite moment of Wish Week is introducing our wish kid to the entire student body at the pep assembly. Every year we try to do it a little differently, but to watch a school with 3,100 kids stand up and cheer and chant and applaud a child is really special,” said Lafererra. “It’s really beautiful to watch the entire community.”
All of this work is done because of how life changing the Make-A-Wish foundation is, and this year, EHS is trying to help grant the wish of Cait, an 11-year-old from Aurora with an autoimmune disorder. Cait’s wish is to see Hamilton on Broadway in New York City, and her love for theater, and positive mindset is admired by both Laferrera and Ward.
“Cait is a very energetic, loveable individual and I just love [her] spirit so much. I’d say being able to persevere through the hard times and being able to complete the hard times with a smile on your face is definitely something I’ve learned from Cait,” Ward said.
Laferrera hopes that the EHS student body can learn from Cait and apply those lessons to their own lives as well.
“Cait is bold, beautiful, strong, courageous and positive. Some of the stuff that Cait has gone through, I mean, adults haven’t had to be in the hospital that often and have to endure so much,” said Laferrera. “I think [students will] learn from Cait the importance of just having a really positive outlook on life. Life is gonna throw you curveballs and it’s going to be challenging, but it’s really kind of how you see it and what you make of it.”
In order for all students to fully grasp how important this week is, Laferrera believes they need to understand not only who EHS is raising money for, but the financial factors that go into granting a wish as well.
“It’s $7,500 to grant a wish. If each kid donates $3, or $5, we could make $15,000. We wouldn’t be able to just grant Cait’s wish but other wishes, too,” Laferrera said. “Instead of getting Starbucks or getting Uber Eats for lunch, donate that $5 back to this incredible cause and really just bring some joy to a kid’s life.”
Outside of just donating, there are a plethora of events happening that are also opportunities for students to support Make-A-Wish Colorado, like Cait’s Carnival & Dance happening on Friday, February 16th. Ward and Lafererra hope that students take full advantage of all of these opportunities.
“Go out there and participate in events. Just be aware of every event we have and participate and donate especially,” recommends Ward. “Usually our dance is really under attended compared to other things that we do, but we’re turning it into a carnival.”
Hopefully, the passion and excitement that comes from those who plan Wish Week is also adopted by the EHS student body who has the opportunity and power to make a huge difference in Cait’s life and the lives of other children with critical illnesses in Colorado. Be sure to donate, purchase a spirit pack, and attend Movie Night, Bingo Night, Eaglecrest Next Top Raptor, and Cait’s Carnival & Dance next week!
