Bayleys boosts Make-A-Wish expansion

(From left) John Bayley, executive chairman of Bayleys Real Estate; Shane Gorst, CEO of Make-A-Wish NZ; Kavanna Jade, Make-A-Wish NZ child ambassador; and Mike Bayley, managing director of Bayleys.

Bayleys Real Estate has announced the creation of an elite sponsorship arrangement with Make-A-Wish New Zealand which strives "to make the impossible possible" for children suffering from life threatening conditions by granting their ultimate wishes.

Make-A-Wish New Zealand will become Bayley's principal charity in a planned long term partnership to give more ailing children hope, strength and some happiness.

With its current funding framework Make-A-Wish New Zealand is able to grant just 200 wishes per year. In order to grant the wish of every eligible child in New Zealand, Make-A-Wish must expand its wish program to meet the sheer volume of around 400 children who are diagnosed with a life threatening medical condition each year.

In partnership with Bayleys, Make-A-Wish New Zealand is now working towards granting every eligible child's wish which is determined by two volunteer 'Wish Granters' sitting down with each young applicant to learn what their greatest wish is and how it might become a reality.

The child must have a life threatening medical condition to qualify and be aged between three and 17 at the time of application. About 60 per cent of children involved with Make-A-Wish New Zealand have some form of aggressive cancer and the remaining 40 per cent suffer from a variety of rare and incapacitating conditions.

Money raised from sponsorship and donations goes towards paying for the wishes which are limited only by the child's imagination.

Bayleys already supports more than 300 charities, generating in excess of $1.5 million per annum for not-for-profit organisations.

Sue Stanaway, general manager of Bayleys Foundation, says the beauty of Make-A-Wish New Zealand is that it gives children hope and excitement to mask the effects of their debilitating illnesses. "Most importantly, it gives them the opportunity to be children again," Stanaway says.

Shane Gorst, chief executive of Make-A-Wish New Zealand, welcomed Bayleys as the charity's first ever elite partner and expressed confidence "that every eligible child will soon have the opportunity to have their one cherished wish come true".

Bayleys managing director Mike Bayley says that with a national network of 79 offices and 1578 personnel, the company is in a strong position to support Make-A-Wish through both fundraising and awareness-raising activities organised at a branch level.