Bringing some light to darkness

Christine Woods, Make-A-Wish Southern Ambassadors chair, works every day to bring a moment of joy into the lives of children in the area who have a critical diagnosis.

The small group of ambassadors in the area raise funds to grant the wishes of local children. At 6 p.m. on Saturday, April 6, they will again be holding their Love at First Wish event, with a theme titled Wish Upon a Star, at the Rio Grande Winery in Las Cruces.

“The donations and sponsorships go straight to granting wishes in our community,” Woods said. “I would say over the course of the year we grant eight to 10 wishes. We have about 10 children waiting because we are still trying to catch up from Covid.”

Most of the children whose wishes are granted ask for trips, mostly to Disney World, she said. Sometimes it might be a wish for a shopping spree or a playground in the back yard.

In December of 2023, wish child Joshua Williams of Las Cruces had his wish to meet wrestler and actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson come true. When asked why he wanted to meet The Rock, Josh said, “To do everything the way he does. I want to work out like him, I just want to be like him. He inspires me in so many ways with how hardworking and how dedicated he is in all his stuff.”

Williams will be at this year’s event to share the impact of that wish and what it meant to him.

“We also have a pediatrician who is going to share her current wishes and what she has seen on the impact of make a wish,” Woods said.

She said any critical medical issue qualifies a child to get a wish granted. Many times, the illness involves cancers, often leukemia.

“We hope to soften the blow and bring hope so they can travel their medical journeys with some joy,” she said. “It’s beyond words, the impact this has. It’s a day or week with their family where they can forget about doctors and medicine and have the childhood that we all want for our children.”