The New Jersey Make-A-Wish Foundation hit a milestone Wednesday by granting the organization’s 10,000th wish.
The recipient was 8-year-old Klara Pederson. Klara was presented with a special motorized chair to help her get around. The presentation happened at the Make-A-Wish Foundation castle in Monroe Township.
“I said, ‘Are you excited?’ and she said ‘Yes,’” says mother Emily Pederson. “She was holding back tears. I can tell.”
Klara was born with a muscular disorder and is unable to walk. Her family lives on the edge of a nature preserve where they enjoy walking. The chair will now allow Klara to get around much easier.
“She [used to] either be carried on my back or pulled in a wagon,” Emily says about the walks the family would take. “This is going to let her be independent.”
The wish is part of Make-A-Wish Foundation’s goal to grant 600 wishes in New Jersey this year. CEO Tom Weatherall says that the compound in Monroe is designed to make the wishes even more special.
“We’ve been in it six years, and it was designed to help transform our mission so we can find and grant more wises,” he says.
The value of each wish is about $10,000.