East Granby Seniors Celebrate Seven Years Fundraising

As part of the Make-A-Wish Kids For Wish Kids program, Madeline Moore and Julia Redfield have raised more than $20,000 on behalf of Make-A-Wish® Connecticut, beginning small with lemonade and hot chocolate stands and moving to two Ski-A-Thons per year. This year, the first Ski-A-Thon is THIS Saturday, March 7th at Mohawk Mountain in Cornwall, followed by next Sunday March 15th at Ski Sundown in New Hartford.

Madeline and Julia, seniors at East Granby High School, have made an extraordinary impact on children across the state. These young women created a Ski-A-Thon to raise money for Make-A-Wish® Connecticut. But Madeline and Julia are not wish kids or affected by critical illnesses; they are two girls who recognize the transformative power of a wish and are passionate about helping local children receive their one true wish.

Moore and Redfield’s fundraising for Make-A-Wish started seven years ago when they were only in 6th grade. It all began with small lemonade and hot chocolate stands, but their dedication and vision led them to something much bigger; they incorporated their love of skiing with their devotion to give back to Connecticut children. Madeline says that “the choice to donate to Make-A-Wish was an easy one - I was inspired by a family friend who was active with fundraising and chose Make-A-Wish as their charity. Then we met a wish kid. We were so amazed by her remarkable story and about the impact we could make and the children we could help.”

In the winter of 7th grade, Madeline and Julia devoted their time to speaking with local, small businesses and asking them to participate, either monetarily or by donating gift baskets for a raffle. The first Ski-A-Thon was a success due to the immense love and support the girls received from friends, family, and the community. The girls quickly decided that this was something they wanted to commit to planning and executing every year. Since their first Ski-A-Thon, they have raised a remarkable $20,000 plus to help grant wishes to children with critical illnesses.

While Madeline and Julia are graduating this upcoming spring, their involvement with Make-A-Wish and their Ski-A-Thons is far from over. While the girls are going off to college, they still hope to continue their Ski-A-Thon legacy.

Put on your snow shoes and get on the slopes to celebrate Madeline and Julia’s generosity and to help make wishes come true! The dates for this year’s events are Saturday March 7th at Mohawk Mountain in Cornwall, CT and Sunday March 15th at Ski Sundown in New Hartford, CT. To register, come to the event and make a minimum donation of $10 starting at 7:30 AM. The Ski-A-Thons will be held from 9 AM until 12:30 PM. For more information, contact 860-969-7101 or 860-790-9637.

ABOUT MAKE-A-WISH CONNECTICUT

Make-A-Wish® Connecticut creates life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. They seek to bring every eligible child's wish to life because a wish is an integral part of a child's treatment journey. Research shows children who have wishes granted can build the physical and emotional strength they need to fight a critical illness. Together, generous donors, supporters, staff and volunteers across the state currently grant nearly 250 wishes a year. Since 1986, Make-A-Wish Connecticut has granted more than 3,300 wishes to local children. For more information about Make-A-Wish Connecticut, visit ct.wish.org.