Spencer, age 12

Spencer's wish presentation party seemed to exceed everyone's expectations. Spencer had selected a special group of about 20 guests to attend the party at his family’s home. It was decided to have it at their home in order to accommodate all of the people that have supported Spencer and his family since he was diagnosed in May of 2008 and his brother Mitch in June of 2009.

The home had such a fun positive energy about it, with kids and adults talking about recent baseball games, surfing and good times. It was primarily a group of tween boys who poked fun at each other in that usual tween way, while meandering from the house to the backyard to swim in a very large above ground pool. Meanwhile all of the adults stayed inside, eating and chatting in the house that Claudia and I had filled with balloons, fish netting and a fishing game that ended up being a big hit. The game involved a large punch bowl filled with water and plastic fish that could be hooked with two small fishing poles. It was not only a hit with the kids, but also the adults. We were pleasantly surprised!

After everyone had eaten pizza, fried chicken (Spencer's favorite), salad, and more, Claudia and I decided to have everyone gather in the family room to present Spencer's special giant chocolate chip cookie (again another favorite), with writing "Have fun Spencer," and the check for their trip. Claudia began by thanking the group of people for coming in support of Spencer and ended up delivering a wonderful heartfelt speech that left not a single dry eye in the house. I then recapped the family's Alaskan itinerary and all the exciting things that were planned for them by the Make-A-Wish Foundation on a daily basis. We then turned it over to the family to say a few words and they also delivered a very heartfelt thank you to the entire group of family, friends and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Spencer was beaming and seemed extremely happy. His mom reiterated that Spencer is so grateful and excited for his first ever fishing trip to Alaska. It means so much to Spencer because his Dad and "Poppy" started going to Alaska to fish almost 19 years ago. "Poppy" is not Spencer's grandfather but Dad's best friend and somewhat of a grandfather figure in Spencer's life. Over the years, Spencer has seen pictures and heard amazing stories about these fishing trips, like the time Dad caught a 165 lb halibut. But Mom said that the fishing trips to Alaska were too expensive to continue. The family has only been able to go on local fishing trips for the past several years, so Spencer's Alaskan fishing wish is the ultimate for him and his family.

Spencer’s Mom included the following notes of appreciation in an email to Claudia and I after the party:

"I too have gone on and on... even my husband left me a note on the bar the Monday morning at 4:30 when he left for work. It said, "Sunshine, have a great day today. The party Saturday night was one of the best parties we've ever had! Love, Joe." It was sweet."

"Then... Saturday night after everyone left, I finally got the boys into their beds at midnight and Spencer wanted to process the entire evening and talk about it all. He expressed his thankfulness for the party and how much he enjoyed having Tiffany and Claudia from the Make-A-Wish Foundation make it so fun and special. This conversation with Spencer was very touching as he's not too expressive. His brother Mitch on the other hand is... so when Spencer shares, you know it's straight from the heart." Submitted by Tiffany and Claudia, Volunteers