Make-A-Wish Foundation: A Wish to Come True for the Coachella Valley

By Lisa Morgan

Make-A-Wish grants the wish of a child diagnosed with a life-threatening medical condition in the United States and its territories, on average, every 38 minutes. They believe that a wish experience can be a game-changer. A new office for this institution has been opened in Palm Springs, and the public is invited for a free reception to celebrate. But this organization has something up its sleeve – a secret that is destined to unfold in a matter of weeks. It is a secret that CV Weekly feels obligated to tell its readers.

First, let’s investigate how Make-A-Wish originated. Interrogating their website (and going through several tissues) we uncovered the true story in their own words:

During a long, nighttime stakeout, kneeling in some desert weeds in the spring of 1980, U.S. Customs Agent, Tommy Austin tells Arizona Department of Public Safety Officer Ron Cox his problem. His wife’s friend Linda has a small son named Chris Greicius, who is probably going to die of leukemia. The seven-year-old boy yearns to be a police officer, “to catch bad guys” with Austin. Running into bureaucratic hesitation at Customs, Austin asks Cox if maybe DPS can do something. “I’ll rent a helicopter myself if I have to,” Austin says. Cox takes the request to DPS spokesman Allan Schmidt, who asks DPS Director Ralph Milstead. He gives Schmidt carte blanche to grant Chris’ wish. Soon Austin receives a call from Chris’ mom saying that she doesn’t think he can hang on much longer.

“None of us had any idea what we were getting into at the time,” Schmidt will recall 30 years later. He draws other people in: Officer Jim Eaves will bring his patrol car, and Officer Frank Shankwitz his motorcycle, to meet the DPS helicopter flying Chris to headquarters. On April 29, Chris comes from Scottsdale Memorial Hospital to the empty lot by DPS at Lewis and 19th Avenue. There he and his parents are given a tour. That’s when Lt. Col. Dick Schaefer gives the boy a “Smokey Bear” hat and one of his own old badges, and Chris becomes Arizona’s first and only honorary DPS officer. It doesn’t end there.

Knowing they had little time, Cox and Eaves, go to John’s Uniforms, the business that makes all DPS uniforms, and order one Chris’ size. Employees work all night to have it ready the next day. A group of officers take the uniform to his house, where Shankwitz sets up cones for Chris to steer his battery-powered motorcycle through to qualify for a motorcycle officer’s wings. But when they return the next day to present the wings to Chris, he’s gone back into the hospital. With his DPS gifts all around him, clutching his new wings, Chris gives a last smile for the men who have done so much for him in such a short time. He passes May 3. “He was only seven years, 269 days old when he died. But he taught me about being a man even though he was only a boy. I can tell you that because of meeting Chris, I am an entirely different man.” – Tommy Austin, Make-A-Wish Co-Founder and retired U.S. Customs Agent.

The CEO of Make-A-Wish, Orange County & Inland Empire, Stephanie McCormick had this to say about the organization: “We have just completed the greatest number of wishes by our chapter – 318. However, that’s only about half of the medically eligible wishes that are being recorded in our chapter area. We’ve been granting wishes in the Coachella Valley for over 30 years. In order for the community to wrap their arms around what we do, they need to be part of our community. And for them to be part of our community, we need to be part of theirs.”

And that’s when she dropped the bomb: “This community is very familiar with Desi. She just got back from New York (a medical trip funded through fundraising efforts of friends, family and musicians here in the Coachella Valley). We will be granting her wish. The wish granters and the family have been interviewed. Desi has been taken through an activity that helps us get to the heart of what she truly wishes for. She’s given us a couple of ideas. When she decides, we’ll put all the magic touches to it. Then we’ll surprise the family at a Wish Presentation party. I’m excited as heck. It will unfold in the next month or two. It’s a perfect example why we need to have a greater presence here. We would love for the community to embrace this with us!”

There you have it. CV Weekly has uncovered that the new Make-A-Wish office in Palm Springs is definitely a wish come true for the Coachella Valley and most especially, one courageous and deserving little girl.

Make-A-Wish invites everyone to join them for cocktails and hors d’oeuvres to celebrate the grand opening of their new Palm Springs office location! The event will be held on Thursday, January 15th from 5:30 – 7:30 pm at the Hacienda Cantina & Beach Club on 1555 S. Palm Canyon, Palm Springs. Please RSVP to Deborah Weiss at 760-668-2713 or dweiss@wishocie.org

Learn more about Make-A-Wish at wish.org