As the celebration and storytelling of Black History Month wraps up, we wanted to take a moment to shine a light on a special group of volunteer leaders who have made bold strides toward reaching EVERY eligible child, regardless of their racial or socioeconomic status. The creation of Community Councils in Brooklyn, the Bronx and Staten Island, is helping ensure that every child receives an equal wish experience.

For many years, most of our chapter’s wish-granting volunteers lived in Manhattan or Long Island. Many were uncomfortable traveling to neighborhoods in Brooklyn and the Bronx to interview the wish kids who lived there. Without volunteers to meet with these children and families and get the ball rolling, their wishes were being delayed.

To bridge the gap, the first Community Council was created in Brooklyn in January 2018. Championed by local community leaders, the goal of the council was to raise awareness and support of the Make-A-Wish mission. The council members helped increase medical referrals of Brooklyn kids and connect with potential local donors. But most importantly, they fostered strategic volunteerism within their community. They recruited volunteers who were not only willing to go to wherever wish kids lived, but who also looked like them, understood them culturally, and were familiar with the experiences and barriers they face.

As one early member of the Brooklyn Community Council remarked, ““I couldn't understand it. Being here my entire life, I thought everybody wanted to come to Brooklyn?” But the reputation of misunderstood communities held strong, intimidating volunteers who were unfamiliar with the borough. “It kicked me into gear, not in the perspective of being Black or Latino or White. It kicked me in because they're kids, and kids don't ask for the things that they go through.”

In one year, the number of wish-granting volunteers in Brooklyn more than doubled and the number of kids waiting be assigned a volunteer had fallen by almost half. The grassroots leadership of the Brooklyn Community Council was such a success that the program was expanded to the Bronx and Staten Island in subsequent years.

At Make-A-Wish, it is only through our mosaic of different cultures, perspectives and experiences that we can grant life-changing wishes to every eligible child. We are deeply grateful to the past and present volunteer leaders of the Brooklyn, Bronx, and Staten Island Community Councils for their passion and commitment to life-changing wishes.