Faces & Places

             First Kansas City Golf Classic A Huge Success

               Bill Tracy and Tab White                     Wish Teen Jeffrey and his painting

       Winning team from ClaimSolution       Fox4's Karli Ritter serves as auctioneer

Great weather, a great golf course and a great turnout all added up to a great time at the inaugural Kansas City Golf Classic tournament on Monday, June 30th.  UnitedHealthcare was the signature sponsor of the event, which was held at the Nicklaus Golf Club at LionsGate.

33 teams teed off under bright blue skies, and 80 degree temperatures made a perfect day to be out on the links.  The teams that signed up as tournament sponsors played for more than pride.  The team with the best score would qualify for the Sponsors Champions Challenge, and take on the winning Make-A-Wish teams from the Springfield Golf Classic and the St. Louis Golf Classic.  The Champions Challenge will be held September 12th and 13th at the Porto Cima Golf Club in the Lake of the Ozarks.  And the winning sponsor team from Kansas City is-- ClaimSolution!

A live auction was held following the 18 holes of golf, and one of the highlighted items was a special painting done by Wish Teen Jeffrey.  Jeffrey is a very talented artist who is donating 12 paintings to Sir Elton John.  Sir Elton will hang the paintings in the AIDS clinics that he runs in Africa.  To learn more about Jeffrey's artwork and his donations to Make-A-Wish and other charities, click here to visit his website.

We offer a very special thanks to UnitedHealthcare's Bill Tracy and tournament chair Tab White from McCown Gordon for their tireless efforts to make the tournament such a success.  We are already planning next year's outing, so start lining up a foursome for the event!

           Wish Teen Jeffrey Meets Sir Elton John, Gets

                 Surprise Invitation To Concert in Dubai

                                         Wish Teen Jeffrey and Sir Elton John

     Click here to watch WDAF-TV Fox4's report about Jeffrey.

      Click here to visit Jeffrey's website.

We often say that the granting of a wish is the start of our work at Make-A-Wish, because the power of that wish can last a lifetime.  The experience of Wish Teen Jeffrey shows how true those words are.

In October, Jeffrey got his wish to meet superstar singer Sir Elton John when Elton performed at Kansas City's new Sprint Center.  Jeffrey has a medical condition that is causing him to lose his sight.  During their 15 minutes of private time before the concert, Elton and Jeffrey talked about some of the world's most beautiful places. 

Jeffrey mentioned that he saw a story on the Travel Channel about the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, located just east of Saudi Arabia.   Jeffrey said how beautiful the city looked, and he asked if Elton ever performed there.  Elton said yes, and agreed that Dubai was an amazing city.   

Then came the shock-- Elton asked his tour manager if Dubai was on the current concert schedule, and it was.   Elton turned to Jeffrey and invited the teen and his parents to fly to Dubai as his guests and attend the concert.   Talk about the power of a wish!   The family graciously said yes, and the entire trip is a present from Elton.

A very grateful Jeffrey took a present to Dubai.  Jeffrey uses his painting skills to raise money for research into his particular disease.  He presented one of his paintings to Sir Elton and told the singer he could auction it off to raise money for his AIDS charity.   Sir Elton said he'd never sell the work of art.  Instead, he asked Jeffrey for several more painting that will hang in other AIDS clinics in Africa. 

           Wish Teen Khai Gets Up Close And Personal

               With Kansas City Chiefs Players, Coaches

                                      Larry Johnson Gives Pro Bowl Jersey To Khai

17 year old Khai is wild about the Kansas City Chiefs.  He not only follows them on TV and in the newspaper, Khai also has his entire bedroom decorated with Chiefs photos and memorabilia.   So imagine the thrill Khai got when his wish was granted to meet his sports heroes!

The Chiefs and the Hyatt Regency Crown Center put together a dream weekend for Khai, who lives with his family in Lake Ozark, Missouri.  On Friday, Khai got a tour of Arrowhead Stadium and a chance to meet with his favorite Chiefs, including star running back Larry Johnson, star tight end Tony Gonzalez and Chiefs Head Coach Herman Edwards. Larry Johnson made Khai's day by giving the Wish Teen the practice jersey Johnson received as a Pro Bowl player.  And, of course, Khai and his family got tickets to a Chief's game and Invitation Only tickets to the Ambassador's tent at Arrowhead Stadium.

The wish weekend wasn't only about football.  The Hyatt Regency Crown Center gave Khai and his family the royal treatment, including their rooms and several meals.  The American Heartland Theater donated tickets to its Saturday night performance of "Another Night Before Christmas." 

Thanks to everyone who made Khai's football wish come true!

              Khai with Tony Gonzalez                                    Khai and his family

Balloon Glow Kicks Off Stories Of Light Fundraising Drive

The beautiful glow of ten hot air balloons signaled the beginning of the annual Stories of Light fundraising drive for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  Donations will help make wishes possible for children with life-threatening medical conditions. 

Saturday's event was held outside The Woodlands racetrack in Kansas City, Kansas.   Balloon pilots from across the area donated their time and talents, and put on quite a show for the hundreds of people who stopped by to enjoy the show.   Visitors got a chance to talk with the pilots, check out the equipment and learn more about the skills it takes to fly a hot air balloon. 

If you want to change a child's life and share the power of a wish, call 816-889-WISH and make a donation to the Stories of Light campaign.   Thank you in advance for your support.

NASCAR Stars Help Make Wishes Come True At Kansas Speedway

Two young race fans found themselves in the middle of NASCAR nation in late September, thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation®, the Kansas Speedway and the efforts of some Kansas City area volunteers.

Wish Child Jimmy came from Texas and Wish Child Chase traveled from Wisconsin to watch the NASCAR races at Kansas Speedway. Their families were treated to a weekend of high speeds, ear-splitting noise and huge crowds. While tens of thousands of fans were limited to their Grandstand seats during Race Weekend, Jimmy and Chase received a VIP tour of the pits and got an ‘up close and personal’ look at the million dollar race cars and what it takes to get them ready for the track.

Friday night, the Ford Racing Team went out of its way to give the boys a memorable experience. Each of the drivers took time out of their autograph sessions to greet Jimmy and Chase, sign their shirts and pose for photographs. On Saturday morning the boys met two of the most popular and successful stars on the NASCAR circuit. Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Junior both took time out of their hectic schedules to greet the boys and talk about racing.

We offer a special thanks to Kansas City volunteer Kim Huls. Kim spent the entire weekend serving as an escort for the Wish children and their families to make sure that their NASCAR experience was everything they wished for, and more. It was!