The Wishes and Dreams Tour commenced in Estevan on Aug. 6, spearheaded by the province's Chapter Director of the Children's Wish Foundation, Gay Oldhaver.
Its main goal is to raise awareness for the 25th Children's Wish Million Dollar Lottery across southern Saskatchewan and talk about the children who have been positively affected by the foundation, and had their wishes come true.
"When we're looking at our goals for this year, something like the lottery is super important," said Oldhaver, who is on her third tour. "It allows us that comfort and freedom to not even question the fact that we can provide these wishes."
The lottery is what fuels the Children's Wish Foundation's ability to grant children in Saskatchewan who are suffering life-threatening illnesses, their wishes.
The grand prize is $1 million in cash, while other prizes include a vacation for life, or its $75,000 cash equivalent, and more. An Early Bird category includes prizes as well, including a luxury vehicle. Oldhaver said these lotteries help the foundation fulfill its mandate of guaranteeing a child's wish once it has been accepted.
"It's part of our charitable ethical code, we must make it happen once it goes through, and on the timeline of the child," she said. "If they're just embarking on treatment or if they're just finishing, it's going to drive what the timeline is."
Oldhaver is also really excited for a recent wish made by a young girl, who asked for something that hasn't been done before by the Children's Wish Foundation in Saskatchewan.
"She wants a dog," the director said with a smile. "And it's not just any dog, it's a West Highland terrier. That's going to take a little bit of time to put together. We need to research the breeder, we want to make sure we get something of quality, and of course, we have to support the family and provide them with training classes. You got to be ready to do the off the beaten path wishes."
Oldhaver added travel-related wishes have become a very smooth process when it to comes organizing those plans, and can be arranged for a short time frame, or planned a year out.
Every wish has an average budget of $10,000, but Oldhaver stressed the organization's "can-do attitude" allows them to be flexible when faced with variables.
"First we just have to make sure it's safe and within our guidelines, and then we put on our thinking caps and say 'okay, how can we make this happen?'"
At times, she collaborates with Wish Foundations from other provinces to see if they've granted a similar wish, all in the hopes of achieving the ultimate goal of providing a sick child with their custom-made wish. Some are as creative as a real-world Super Mario game controlled with the use of an oversized Nintendo control, which a young boy from Prince Albert wished for. Due to the urgency to accommodate the condition of the child, six days later, members of the community had everything constructed and organized.
"We don't have a catalogue that we show kids, or a list of wishes to choose from," Oldhaver explained. "We just ask the child, 'what would be your magical wish?'"
In 2013, 16,000 lottery tickets were sold, which helped fund 70 wishes in Sask., and the year before that, 55. Over the past several years, more than 20 children from Estevan have been granted wishes.
Oldhaver also praised the Wish Moms in Estevan, who have organized the Wishmaker Walk, another fundraising campaign for children who are facing life-threatening illnesses. She also thanked everyone who has supported the foundation over the past 25 years.
The Early Bird deadline is Aug. 21, while the final deadline for the lottery is Aug. 28.
