All Fountains at Universal go to GTKTW

[Disneyfan754321]

All the wishes made at universal the change is donated to Give the kids the world.

 

[Evita_W]

I wish Disney would do the same. Make A Wish isn't a bad organization, but they spend so much on marketing and overhead that very little of the money donated goes towards those that need it. It unfortunately is a reality of companies when they get too big, even nonprofits. Give Kids The World gets a lot more of the money to where it is needed.

So, I would just prefer the money to go to Give Kids the World as a result.

 

[ChanaC]

I think Disney picks different organizations every year. I believe last year or the year before they donated to the local United Way.

Make-A-Wish is still really good. "Fun" fact about MAW - each chapter kind of operates as their own organization. So MAW Southern Florida operates separately from MAW Central & Northern Florida. As such, each chapter has varying levels of money that goes directly back to the wishes vs overhead and marketing. For example, I just pulled the financials for a few chapters. Southern FL says 75.4% of their money goes back to wish granting while Central and Northern FL says 74% does, the Greater Los Angeles chapter does 71%, the Mississippi chapter does 71%, and the New Jersey chapter does 78%. WDW would probably donate to Central & Northern FL, but if you personally want to donate either find your local chapter or find a chapter that has a good percentage of financials that go directly back to the kids. 75% going back to programs and services is a pretty average for nonprofits as a whole.

There are also a bunch of smaller wish granting organizations out there. There are a few chapters of The Dream Factory around the US, and they say that 96% of their funds go back to wishes. They are also mostly volunteer driven so they don't have full time employees like MAW. It looks like they are similar to MAW but also grant wishes to children with chronic illnesses and disorders, not necessarily children with life-threatening illnesses.

Of note, GKTW has 90% go back to their mission which really is fantastic!

 

[sparky68]

I wish Disney would do the same. Make A Wish isn't a bad organization, but they spend so much on marketing and overhead that very little of the money donated goes towards those that need it. It unfortunately is a reality of companies when they get too big, even nonprofits. Give Kids The World gets a lot more of the money to where it is needed.

So, I would just prefer the money to go to Give Kids the World as a result.

Universal has a volunteer vacation package. My last trip we did it. You do a morning/breakfast shift in the village for about 4 hours. Universal provides you transportation from your resort, and back.
It was an amazing experience.
For every volunteer that signs up with universal they donate $100 to gktw.

 

[Disneyfan754321]

I am a alumi GTKTW ( former wish family )
I know Disney gives the 3 day hopper tickets, sends princesses etc for weekly visits plus so much more, but I really like how Universal openly promotes GTKTW.

 

[Jen0107c]

Universal has a volunteer vacation package. My last trip we did it. You do a morning/breakfast shift in the village for about 4 hours. Universal provides you transportation from your resort, and back.
It was an amazing experience.
For every volunteer that signs up with universal they donate $100 to gktw.

That’s awesome! I never knew that... I’ll have to look into that that next time I go.

 

[HopperFan]

I think Disney picks different organizations every year.

THIS ^

For a few years they were giving to Orlando area children's hospitals. They've also donated to Community Based Care of Central Florida, foster children programs ... basically programs that assist children. I think total for just coins is up to around $400,000+.

Last year they gave $20,000 to the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida in addition to lots of meals.

Disney gives GKTW tons of support in all different ways including man power at times that is more valuable than what they would get in coins, and it is a long term commitment.

Disneyland has a similar program and I believe they are partnered with Make A Wish like Disney World is partnered with GKTW. The donation of coin money to children's charities started with Walt. And Disneyland Paris park does similar I believe with Paris Children's hospitals.