Make-A-Wish® Foundation of Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia

2011 Light Up A Child's Life, Pittsburgh

The 23rd Annual Pittsburgh Light Up A Child's Life® campaign with WISH 99.7 FM kicked off from Fifth Avenue Place in Downtown Pittsburgh with an interview with wish dad and fundraiser Chad McCall. Chad organized the 8th Annual Christopher's Challenge golf outing, which raised $8,200 in May 2011. Since 2004, more than $51,000 has been raised for the Foundation through this tournament. It is held in memory of Chad’s son, Christopher, whose wish was to go to Walt Disney World® in August 2004, when Christopher was four years old. Medfast representative Kelly Willy came to Fifth Avenue Place with her daughter Kaylin to speak about her company's second year of fundraising efforts for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. She is pictured with Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater PA and Southern WV President and CEO Judi Stone. Wish kid Lance, 12, of Dravosburg, talked on the radio about his wish to visit Hawaii in 2008 and sported his autographed T-shirt from the Foundation's annual Pens and Pins event. He is pictured here with Make-A-Wish Manager of Special Events Stephanie Pugliese. Two teachers from Paytner Elementary School spoke about their Dancing with the Teachers event, which included the entire Baldwin-Whitehall School District, and Zumbathon that raised more than $9,000! Way to go! Many thanks to Diane McKenzie, her daughter Julie and Deborah Lyles who volunteered at the Monroeville Mall to help raise money to make wishes come true.
WISH 99.7 Morning Show Host Ron Antill and wish kid Shelby take a photo at Monroeville Mall. Shelby's wish for a Disney cruise was granted in 2009. Kellie Barker and the South Hills Dream Makers began with a group of Girl Scouts who were eager to give back to their community. Kelli, along with the help of many in the Baldwin-Whitehall School District, organized a charity basketball game with the Harlem Wizards – not your average basketball team. The kids had fun watching and cheering on their teachers at the Baldwin High School gymnasium all while raising $4,686! Daryl Sherred from PICPA spoke on the radio about the Pittsburgh Chapter's 3rd Annual Make-A-Wish Holiday Party on December 9th at The Beer Hive. Karen Fischetti from Westinghouse Electric Company, a campaign sponsor, talked about how the company produces and sends a global holiday card e=blast that featured artwork from local wish kids instead of sending paper holiday cards. The money that would have been spent on the holiday cards - $30,000 -- is then donated to Make-A-Wish chapters around the world, with the lion’s share will be donated to our local chapter. Mark Vizza and some folks from PNC Treasury Management posed with Judi Stone and Ron Antill after sharing the results from their 9th Annual Golf Outing, Dinner and Auction on WISH 99.7. It raised an incredible $44,200!
Alice Platt and another representative from Saks Fifth Avenue came to talk about what the Downtown Pittsburgh store did to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Tim Martin, Candi Cybator and Jacquie Ward from Pitt Ohio Express presented a donation of $16,956 to Make-A-Wish President and CEO Judi Stone at Fifth Avenue Place during the campaign. WISH 99.7 Morning Show Host Ron Antill is also pictured. Judi Stone and Ron Antill interviewed Brightside Academy President and CEO and Make-A-Wish Board Member Mark Kehoe, along with Alicia Phipps, during the campaign at Fifth Avenue Place. Brightside Academy is a new Wishmakers at Work donor. Mike Mortensen, President & CEO of PNC Investments and Make-A-Wish Board Chairman (right), along with Lynn Witkowski, enthusiastically presented a big $73,000 check from their spectacular Columbus Day 11th Annual Golf Outing and Dinner Auction at Quicksilver Golf Club. Wish kid Paige and Stacy Wynkoop from Shaler Elementary School spoke on the radio about the school's Wellness for Wishes event to benefit the Foundation. As part of the event kids can challenge their teachers to fun sports competitions. We are look forward to this year’s event coming up in the spring!
WISH 99.7's Dan Dunlap and Make-A-Wish Marketing and Communications Coordinator Dana Antkowiak conducted the first interview on Make-A-Wish TV with representatives from The Nutrition Group. Tracy Warden talks about Tri-State Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine's commitment to helping make wishes come true with Dana Antkowiak from the Foundation. Dana Antkowiak and Toni Nelson from the Elliott Company, a long time supporter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, share some laughs during their interview. Dana Antkowiak and Barbara Pellegrino from the RJ Lee Group pose for a photo b before their live web interview. Make-A-Wish Chief Operating Officer Ann Hohn interviews wish dad and volunteer Tom Craig. His son Michael, who met his favorite baseball player for his wish in 1996, is now engaged and doing well.
This adorable seven-year-old stopped by the campaign with her dad and younger sister to drop off a donation from her birthday party. Ann Hohn and WISH 99.7's Cris Winter interviewed her about her party. The thirteen members of the Freeport Junior High School Friends in the Park book club posed with Santa Stella! after their interview at Monroeville Mall. Each of the members contributed stories and illustrations for Wish kid Travis talked with Ann Hohn about his wish to go to Hawaii in 2010. This group of incredible ladies, getting ready for their interview with WISH 99.7's Ron Antill and Make-A-Wish Manager of Special Events Stephanie Pugliese, has been raising money to help make wishes come true since 2008. The Beautiful Beaders take much of their free time to make and sell their jewelry to try to reach their goal each year. Their three-year total is more than $10,000! A big smile comes across wish kid Joey's face as he describes his Walt Disney World wish during the Monroeville Mall webcast. Joey, 9, went with his family to Orlando in June 2011.
All ready for Christmas, glowing seven-year-old Hannah talks about her wish to meet Tinkerbell with Ron Antill and Stephanie Pugliese. Since 2002, the BSA Venture Crew 630 has raised more than $19,000 through various fundraisers. They also hold a wish kid party each summer and volunteer during the campaign. Tom Ulery and Mark Wiehagen from Busy Beaver stopped by the campaign at Monroeville Mall to talk about their annual donation and the making of the new Make-A-Wish wishing well, which is used to collect donations at our campaign sites. Thank you so much! Ron Antill pulls the winner for Busy Beaver's Make-A-Wish raffle to win a handmade wishing well! Ron Antill and Stephanie Pugliese interview Robyn Calvert about Katie’s Walk for the Children, which has been held in memory of wish kid Katie since 2007 and has raised more than $16,000.
Wish kid Kevin talked about his January 2011 Disney World adventure with Ron Antill and Stephanie Pugliese. Dana LaVerde and associates from Standard Bank made their 18th LUACL appearance with Make-A-Wish Vice President and Director of Development Barb Becker (left). Congratulations to Standard Bank on granting their 100th wish this year! The Sheetz/Make-A-Wish® affiliation began in 2005 when, after a thorough search, the Sheetz Family Charities Board chose to support the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Gina Hazelet appeared on behalf of Sheetz to speak with Barb Becker and WISH 99.7's Sara Lockard. Tom Figore from Duquesne Light was interviewed by Barb Becker and Sara Lockard about the company's support for the Foundation since 1992. Debbie Keegan and another representative from Westinghouse Blairsville made their 5th campaign appearance, donating $9,600 to help make kids' wishes come true.
Barb Becker and Sara Lockard interviewed Mike Deane, Jeff McIlroy and Rob McIlroy from Robroy Industries, Inc. who spoke about their seven years of support for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Since 2004, they have raised more than $49,000! Wish kid Domenic smiled as he described his adventurous Hawaii wish to WISH 99.7 morning show host Sara Lockard. Wish kid Sara talked with Barb Becker about her amazing wish experience meeting the Disney World musicians, being a Make-A-Wish scholarship recipient and her support for the Foundation. Mary Waldbaum and representatives from Bombardier Transportation Associates spoke during the webcast about fundraising for the Foundation since 1990. Steve Crouse, Manager of Materials Management at CONSOL Energy spoke about the company's 15th Annual Golf Outing, which raised more than $100,000 for the Foundation! Way to go!
Steve Sopko spoke about SCI Greensburg's Annual Shots for Tots event to benefit the Foundation. The event includes foul shot & 3 point basketball shoot, along with a session with the Pittsburgh Pirates Alumni for autographs. Mark Cinna (middle) and the employees of ThermoFisher Scientific hosted their 3rd Annual golf outing this August at Blackhawk Golf Course in Beaver Falls that is named in memory of Tom Sajko. Six-year-old wish kid Michael sported a cute smile and a Mickey hat while being interviewed by the Foundation's Barb Becker about his Disney World wish. Wish kid Mark and Barb Becker share a laugh during his interview about his wish to meet a favorite country music star. An overview shot of our campaign location at the Mall at Robinson!
Make-A-Wish mascot Stella! waving hi with a volunteer. A group of excited Eisenhower Elementary students, along with their teacher Michelle Stack, get ready to talk about their math-a-thon and read-a-thon to help grant wishes with WISH 99.7's Dan Dunlap and Make-A-Wish Development Coordinator Brittany Youngman. Back in February, Kimberly Rudesill and the Shenango High School Peer Leadership group hosted Dancing with the Stars: Staff Edition and raised $4,500 for the Foundation! Wish kid Joshua takes a picture with Brittany Youngman after being interviewed about his wish to explore volcanos in Hawaii. Bill Scherfel from Integrative Staffing Group, a campaign sponsor, presents a donation to Brittany Youngman during the Mall at Robinson campaign.
Brittany Youngman interviewed Pokey Roberts and Lisa Bakaysza from Steel City Harley-Davidson about their motorcycle run this summer, which raised $2,181 for the Foundation. This was the first Light Up A Child's Life appearance for Nancy Batko and representatives from Keller Williams Realty Pittsburgh North, which held their 4th Annual Charity Golf Outing at the Ligonier Country Club in August to benefit the Foundation. Barbara Law from Coldwell Banker Real Estate Services talked with Brittany Youngman about the real estate agency's efforts to raise money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation for the past several years. Barbara manages the Airport Beaver office and will be sponsoring the 5th Annual Bowling for Wishes in March 2012. Julie Sfanos spoke at the campaign about the Foundation's Macy’s Ambassador program. As an ambassador, Julie acts as a liaison between her local store and our offices. She has responsibilities such as speaking engagements, letter pick-ups and visits with the store’s manager and associates. Our ambassadors are a key factor to the success of our Macy’s campaigns! Wish kid Nick shows photos of his wish to meet his favorite magician in Las Vegas during the Light Up A Child's Life broadcast.
Kim Brannock and other representatives from Erie Insurance volunteered at the campaign and made a donation. Lori Brodak and Cheryl McFarland, along with wish kid Katherine Greg is a wish kid from Coraopolis who had his wish fulfilled to be a Pitt Panthers assistant coach back in 2006. This October, Greg held a fundraiser at his school including a Haunted Hallway, bake sale and Chinese raffle to give back. Kristen and Heather Barczynski joined Greg in talking about the fundraising events with WISH 99.7 personality Cris Winter and Make-A-Wish Development Coordinator Brittany Youngman. Dr. Shawn Finn of Finn Chiropractic Group presented a donation of more than $11,000 during the Make-A-Wish TV webcast. Dr. Shawn Finn and his amazing staff have been raising funds all year with donations coming in from screenings, $5 for each new patient and $1 for each maintenance visit. This is our best chiropractic fund raising group ever! Dylan Hespenheide is a very special kid who has been raising money for us since 2007. Instead of receiving gifts for his birthday, Dylan asks his guests to bring donations for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Since he started celebrating and sharing his birthday with our wish kids, Dylan has raised about $4,000! This year, he presented Brittany Youngman with $1,271.57 in donations.
Brittany interviews Jodi Zema and Patrice Sekuta of Kuhn's Market, a Light Up A Child's Life campaign sponsor. Kuhn's Market has donated $7,000 since 2003. Brittany spoke with wish kid Lacey, 17, about her exciting wish to go to Hawaii. What an adorable photo of wish kid Bailey with Brittany! Bailey, 6, went to Walt Disney World in August. Wish kid Andrew, 14, met his favorite professional skateboarder for his wish. Heather Kanai and another representative from One Oxford Centre, a campaign sponsor, got into the Christmas spirit during their Light Up A Child's Life appearance.
Former wish kid Tyler Perrine and Luke Eidenmuller stopped by the campaign to speak with Judi Stone and Ron Antill about their Scramble for a Cause golf outing to benefit the Foundation. Robert Peirce and the attorneys and staff at Robert Peirce & Associates law offices have been supporters for 12 years. NAIFA Pittsburgh held its 21st annual Dave Evans Memorial Golf Tournament this year. The tournament is named for Dave Evans who was one of the organizers of the tournament for many years. Make-A-Wish Marketing and Communications Coordinator Dana Antkowiak joined Ruth Mihalyi and students from Cornell School District to give a thumbs up for wish kids. The hard working students at McKee Elementary posted for a photo with Dana Antkowiak and WISH 99.7's Sara Lockard.
Representatives from Day Apollo Subaru came to talk about the annual Share the Love event -- which launched November 19th and ran through January 3rd. For every Subaru purchased or leased during this time period, Subaru donated $250 to the buyer’s choice of 5 charities, including the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The idea of Pens & Pins was created by Erin Lilly, who is pictured here with Dana Antkowiak, with the wives and girlfriends of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Each year in either January or February, fans have the opportunity to bowl with the Pittsburgh Penguins at the Crafton – Ingram Bowling Lanes. Activities include a mystery puck sale, bake sale, silent auction and of course autographs! This past January, $44,702 was raised! Carrie Kennedy and students from Hosack Elementary School joined WISH 99.7'S Ron Antill and Make-A-Wish Chief Operating Officer Ann Hohn at the Mall at Robinson. The students at Hosack Elementary have established an amazing program called I Made My Wish For Make-A-Wish at their school, now in it’s third year. Since the rules at school no longer allow students to bring in sweets for their birthday, they created this program to act as a birthday celebration. Each student brings in a donation for our wish kids for their birthday instead of candy or cake. First time donors from Don Pablo's in Robinson and Monroeville collected donations in their fountains for the Foundation and they held two Make-A-Wish nights where 10 percent of the sales of food benefited the foundation. They held one in October and one in December. Employees from Don Pablo's in Robinson also volunteered their time helping out a the product booth at the campaign. Wish kid Madison, who had her wish granted for a trip to Yellowstone National Park in June 2011, gets a hug from Ann Hohn.
Wish kid Abby took a trip to Hawaii in March 2010. Former wish kid Steven, now 24, made a surprise appearance at the campaign. Steven's wish was for an Alaskan cruise. Wish kid Morgan, whose wish was granted for a trip to Walt Disney World, posed with Dana Antkowiak in front of the Make-A-Wish wishing well. Ron Croushore and an associate from Prudential Preferred Realty stopped by the One Oxford Centre campaign with Ron Antill and Judi Stone. The associates of Prudential Preferred Realty have been proud supporters of the Make-A-Wish broadcast since the very beginning. For twenty years, the employees support Make-A-Wish throughout the year with office fundraisers, including yard sales, dances, auctions and holiday luncheons. They are hoping to hit the $1,000,000 mark in donations with this year’s contribution. Ray Yeager from Ductmate Industries made his 8th broadcast appearance with Ron Antill and Judi Stone. Headquartered in Charleroi, the Employees of DMI Companies have been long-time supporters of the Foundation and conduct fundraisers throughout the year, such as 50/50 raffles & dress down Fridays, and the corporation matches each dollar raised. To date, nearly $30,000 has been raised.
David McKamish from McKamish, Inc. has been a Make-A-Wish supporter since our very first broadcast. Since 1989, more than $645,000 has been raised for the Foundation. The students of the North Hills High School Hands for Service Club have been making wishes come true for local kids since 1994. Their advisor, Bonnie Ziff, is a volunteer and a wish mom. The Hands for Service Club does various activities throughout the school year and during their Make-A-Wish Week. Earl Luttner and his company Luttner Financial have raised nearly $275,000 to date through their annual Make-A-Wish Golf Benefit. Earl is pictured here with Judi Stone and Ron Antill. The student council at Ross Elementary School, which has been heading up efforts at their school for our Make-A-Wish kids since 1992, raising a total of over $53,000, joins WISH 99.7's Dan Dunlap and Make-A-Wish staff member Dana Antkowiak. Sarah, 6, smiles as she describes her Walt Disney World wish for webcast viewers.
LeeAnne Davison and Verizon Wireless employees, who presented a donation of $5,375 to the Foundation to Dan Dunlap and Dana Antkowiak, made their 13th Light Up A Child's Life appearance. Dana interviews wish kid Katie about her wish to ride a float in a Disney parade. Cris Winter and Ann Hohn interviewed Chuck Redslob and Tony Venneri, who graciously took over the planning and implementation of the Women’s Golf Tournament from Erica Zappala. In its 12th year, the tournament raised $12,723. Former wish kid Meghan, now 22, who was granted her wish for a swimming pool back in 1998, made a surprise appearance at the campaign. She is pictured here with Ann Hohn. Wish kid Helena, who went on a Mall of America shopping spree, holds her American girl doll as she poses with Cris Winter and Ann Hohn.
Ann Hohn takes a photo with wish kid Jenna (tallest girl), her sisters and mother. Jenna's wish was to visit New York City. Development Coordinator Brittany Youngman interviews wish kid Molly about her Walt Disney World trip. John Marshall Grady, DMD & Associates have raised more than $20,000 since 2006. The students at Plum Borough High School and everyone in the Plum Borough School District are all truly amazing! Raising money for our wish kids since 2000 under the guidance of Rick Berrott (right), they have reached an extraordinary benchmark. These students have raised over $580,000 in just 11 years granting more than162 wishes for local kids, contributing to our scholarship program for wish kids, providing our beloved mascot, Stella, and the most successful Kids for Wish Kids participant in our chapter’s history! This is the second year that Keddie Chevrolet has donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation – granting one full wish! Bill Kumpf, Keddie controller, appeared at the campaign with his grandsons, Dilan and Ryan.
Kelly Johnson has been a Wishmaker donor since 2007 with donations totaling $13,600, in memory of her son Samuel who visited Walt Disney World on his wish in 2003. Make-A-Wish Manager of Special Events Stephanie Pugliese interviews Maria Vondas about Christianpalooza, a pasta dinner held in memory of her son, wish kid Christian. Christian's wish to visit Walt Disney World was granted in 2010. James Cellini from iMortgage Services speaks with Ron Antill and Stephanie Pugliese about the company's third annual golf outing. The event jumped from raising $4,300 the first year to $16,000 the second year! In 2011, the group made magic happen again by raising $18,000! Wish kid Mick joins Mike Washington from the Pittsburgh Power arena football team to speak with Ron Antill and Ann Hohn about his wish to be Pittsburgh Power player for a day. The West Hills Baseball Association presents a donation.
Diane DeGregory from Macy's talks about the store's two big holiday campaigns, Believe and Thanks for Sharing, that benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Macy’s is our chapter’s number one donor. having raised $180,000 last year from their various promotions held during the holiday season. Dana Antkowiak interviews Santa Claus, who made a surprise appearance at the campaign. WISH 99.7's Ron Antill takes a photo with Make-A-Wish staff -- President and CEO Judi Stone, Development Coordinator Brittany Youngman, Manager of Special Events Stephanie Pugliese, Chief Operating Officer Ann Hohn and Vice President and Director of Development Barb Becker. Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School made a surprise visit to the campaign to drop off a donation.

Spot Says… Our chapter granted 681 wishes last year. That's nearly two wishes a day! Spot the Dog

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