Give Kids the World Village, Wish Granters, and Autism

[mowgli1229]

Hi, I have been a long time lurker on these boards, but this is my first time posting. I’ve found a lot of useful information here to help in planning our trip to Disney World.

My 10 year old son is mildly autistic, and he loves, loves, loves Mickey Mouse. So we have been trying to plan a trip to Disney World for 2 years. We have even had the trip booked a couple of times, but always have to cancel due to other things that come up that affect our finances.

So we have started looking for wish organizations that may grant wishes to mildly autistic children. So far I have only found one that will grant wishes to autistic children, and that is the Sunshine Foundation. However, based on the information on their website, it sounds like they will only grant wishes to moderately to severely autistic children, and you have to stay at their Dream Village.

Now don’t get me wrong. If we were lucky enough to get a free trip to Disney World, I would gladly stay wherever the company told me I had to. The problem is that a few months ago, my son was in the computer room with me while I was reading through a trip report for a family that was granted a wish to stay at Give Kids the World Village. After reading about this amazing place and seeing the pictures on the trip report, my son now wants to stay at Give Kids the World Village. I think he almost wants to stay there more than he even wants to meet Mickey Mouse.

So I was wondering if anyone on here might know of an organization that will grant a wish to a mildly autistic child to go to Disney World and stay at Give Kids the World Village. We live in Cincinnati, OH if that helps.

Thanks in advance for any information.

 

[Piper]

I am not positive, but I think that Give Kids The World is just for kids with life threatening illness. Rejoice that your son doesn't fit the criteria!

 

[SueM in MN]

I am not positive, but I think that Give Kids The World is just for kids with life threatening illness. Rejoice that your son doesn't fit the criteria!

You are correct. Life-threatening is part of their description of who they serve.
http://www.gktw.org/

Make a Wish uses the same definition.

I have heard of organizations that will give wish trips to children with autism, but in most cases it is children with moderate, or more likely, very severe autism. Those are the children that the organizations look at as having a life-threatening illness.
Because they don't have any awareness of danger, there are children with moderate to severe autism who wander away from home each year and come to their death by accident - often by wandering into a body of water and drowning because they were mesmerized by the water. So, children with autism severe enough that they wander into danger do have a shorter life expectancy.

 

[Lisa71]

Just save slowly and go when you can. You will get there.

 

[clanmcculloch]

Your son is high functioning. He can understand that Give the Kids the World Village is a place that's been made special for kids who have very serious life threatening illnesses. I know he liked what he saw online but this would be a great example of a situation for teaching him empathy as well as not getting everything he wants and that alternatives to what he wants can be amazing as well.

 

[mowgli1229]

Thank you, SueM and Piper. I had totally forgotten that GKTW was specifically for life threatening illnesses, regardless of the wish granter's policies. A child at DS's school is severely autistic, and you are right about the wandering and running off. His mom and dad both have to pick him up everyday to make sure he gets into the car safely, because otherwise he just runs off every which way. My DS loves to run, too, but he is pretty good about staying with me and holding my hand when we are out in parking lots. Thanks, again.

 

[SueM in MN]

There was a girl with severe autism in our neighborhood a few years ago who got outside, past the locks and alarms her parents had installed. The mom was in the bathroom for a few minutes.

In those few minutes, the child got outside, got out of her own yard and could not be located. The mom called for help right away and a search began very quickly.

They found her body a few hours later in a pond a little ways away from her home. I wrote about her in the SueM's Comments thread near the top of this board. Children with that severe of autism have no concept of danger, tend to have a fascination with water (or some climbing - when I was a school nurse, I knew of a boy who would get away and climb tall things).
Those kids also tend to have no useful speech and don't appear to be paying attention at all when talked to (so won't stop if someone yells that they are wandering into danger).

Because of those factors, kids with severe autism are quite likely to die at a young age due to accidental causes.

I've been told that my youngest DD would have probably qualified for MAW when she was under 18 because of her cerebral palsy and seizures. By that point, we had already gone to WDW many times, so I felt funny even condidering MAW because there are kids with much more severe illnesses than she has (plus, I didn't want to think of her as possibly having a life threatening illness). So, we never applied or looked into it.

 

[SueM in MN]

Also wanted to mention, the OP's son might want to volunteer at GKTW when he's older.
My niece volunteered there over Spring break and said it was just a fabulous experience. She got to be a Princess and a ballet dancer in parades.

 

[scbelleatheart]

Sue, you handled this topic with Class! Good job!

 

[SueM in MN]

Sue, you handled this topic with Class! Good job!

Thanks

 

[WantToGoNow]

How would you find out what medical conditions qualify for a MAW trip, I know that the children don't have to be terminal just have a life threatening condition. My cousin's family is going in October through A Special Wish and staying at Give Kids the World. She has Long QT Syndrome that they discovered when she was in the hospital as an infant. This usually isn't diagnosed and the first symptom is often death so they were really lucky. The nurse at my dd's Hematologists office said she would qualify but I'm like Sue and have a hard time admitting that it's life threatening (could be in the case of an accident, hard fall, etc.).

 

[Mom2M07]

The doctor decides what they consider "life threatening" and then they submit the paperwork to MAW. MAW then has their own medical consultant decide if it fits the criteria set by MAW. My DD could have qualified several years ago, but we decided to wait until her condition was impacting her life enough that she "needed" a wish in order to keep her going. My daughter's illness was impacting her quality of life in many ways and it made sense for us to allow her to have a wish granted at that time. We wouldn't have done it until her illness reached a certain, critical point. Other families likely feel differently.

 

[SueM in MN]

The doctor decides what they consider "life threatening" and then they submit the paperwork to MAW. MAW then has their own medical consultant decide if it fits the criteria set by MAW. My DD could have qualified several years ago, but we decided to wait until her condition was impacting her life enough that she "needed" a wish in order to keep her going. My daughter's illness was impacting her quality of life in many ways and it made sense for us to allow her to have a wish granted at that time. We wouldn't have done it until her illness reached a certain, critical point. Other families likely feel differently.

Yes, a doctor involved in the child's care fills out the paperwork and certifies that the child has a life threatening condition. MAW takes it from there.
When I was in Nursing School (way back in the last century LOL) MAW trips were for children who were terminally ill, many very close to death. With advances in medical treatment, many of those conditions have become chronic life threatening conditions rather than immediate death sentences.

In many cases, MAW is still serving children with the same conditions, but they are no longer terminal at the time of the wish.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . stay at Give Kids the World Village . . .

1) GKTW, is truly a magical place.
2) You could stay there all week without visiting a park, if you wish
3) Some benefits
. . . EVERYTHING IS FREE (except some souvenirs)
. . . pools
. . . rides
. . . eateries
. . . ice cream parlor, pizza
. . . full service restaurants
. . . train rides
. . . gifts daily
. . . talent shows (where everybody wins something)
. . . Christmas once per week
. . . free park tickets (if your foundation didn't supply them)
. . . the whole extended family can stay in the villa(s)
4) The ONLY way to get in is being sponsored by a foundation.
. . . you can have one stay once in your lifetime
. . . however, guest-alumni can day-visit anytime you are in Florida
5) Regardless how bad your illness, we take care of you like royalty.
6) Sometimes this is more a vacation for adults than kids
. . . adults are busy all year caring for the kids
. . . this allows the adults to rest while the kids are entertained
. . . the parents actually go home rested and refreshed !


NOTE: I am a coordinator of volunteers for GKTW, as well as a
volunteer. I usually work at the Ice Cream Parlor or Katie's Kitchen,
the place sponsored by Boston Market. My favorite nights to work
are Wednesdays. Say "Hi" if you are there.

.

 

[Schmeck]

One of my former students used to go to WDW every few years by saving her respite care allowance to pay for the trip.