Petersen Family: On creating healing environments for families

Your child has a brain tumor.

Her precious 14-month-old son, Sam, would need brain surgery within days.

When Barb tells the story, you can still hear the waver in her voice when she recalls the moment when everything changed.

Barb and her young family were thrust into a life they hadn’t ever imagined. The only option was to move forward.

A day later, Barb and Sam moved to the hospital where Sam underwent brain surgery and a long recovery and series of treatments. Her husband Chris and their 5-year-old son Jack then did what so many wish families are forced to do: juggle the challenge of carrying on with everyday life while grappling with a commute to visit their family in the hospital.

Along with the waver in Barb’s voice when she recalls that moment when everything changed, you can hear the hope in her voice when she describes the community that helped their family make it through.

An amazing surgeon. A thoughtful oncologist. Friends. Neighbors. Co-workers. Even strangers.

And a healing a hopeful environment for children and families.

She still remembers the sparks of hope along the way.

Early on during her experiences in the hospital, Barb started hearing about Make-A-Wish.

Wishes sparked conversations with other families who also had children with critical illnesses. They offered a connection about something other than treatment, diagnoses, and the challenging path forward.

Wishes were an integral part of the healing landscape so desperately needed at the time.

For the Petersen family, after the long journey through Sam’s cancer treatment and a somewhat miraculous recovery, a wish was the perfect way to celebrate.

Sam loved Legos and wished for a family trip to Legoland.

Barb recalls one of the best parts of the wish: “I loved that his wish-granters talked to just Sam,” she said, “It was all about what would bring Sam would joy, and none of the medical questions.”

The child-focused nature of the wish offered healing to the whole family.

Sam was in elementary school when his wish was granted, so he doesn’t remember everything about the wish. But he still has a little Lego R2D2 on his shelf as a reminder of the experience.

Now about to graduate from college in 2021, Sam has had many years to reflect on the meaning of a wish. “I think the biggest purpose of a wish is hope,” he said.

For Sam, wishes are also incredibly therapeutic. He said, “Wishes provide kids a window to share their past in a positive light.”

For Sam’s dad, Chris Petersen, the legendary college football coach, wishes have been a part of his life in both a deeply personal way with his own family, and an ever-expanding way through his role as a football coach.

He has seen firsthand how wishes don’t just impact the family in crisis; they pull together a team of athletes to create a kind of magic.

Hope. Energy. Healing.

He recalls one amazing experience when 12-year-old Stephen wished to be the Boise State football coach for the weekend. Chris said, “I didn’t really have to say much to the team before the wish weekend. Everybody on the team got it right away. After the practice, we introduced the wish kid, and to watch the compassion and natural goodness that so many people had in their hearts…everybody got it…and it was so amazing.”

Today the Petersen family is helping us launch a program of Wish Ambassadors to help ensure that future families will receive the hope and healing of a wish.

Wish Family Ambassadors are limited to a small number of wish alumni committed to 5-6 tasks annually to support the local chapter. From reaching out to thank donors and volunteers who make wishes possible through cards and calls, to sharing videos of their experiences—selfie style—or creating small online and in-person events to raise funds and awareness among their networks, there are many ways that Wish Family Ambassadors can show their support.

“When you go through a life-changing experience like a child’s illness, having a community around you is really important. I love to help people know they’re not alone and Make-A-Wish is so special to be able to provide families with hope,” said Barb.

Join Barb and the Petersen family by joining our Wish Alumni group to ensure that all families who have a child facing a critical illness can experience the hope and healing a wish provides. Email [email protected] today.