Cathy Tuggle found out in 2005 that you don’t have to be a fairy godmother to grant a wish. All you have to do is be passionate, love children and get involved with Make-A-Wish Mid-South.
And sometimes it helps to wear a Minnie Mouse costume.
Tuggle is chairman of this year’s Make-A-Wish Farm Fresh Wishes benefit dinner Nov. 7 at the Governor’s Mansion. How much support has she rallied? The event, seating 200, sold out four months ago.
Tuggle will be the first to tell you that volunteering for Make-AWish is one of the most gratifying experiences in her life.
“I enjoy doing this,” she said. “I don’t know how or why, but I believe that I was put here on this earth to give back. And what betterperson to benefit than a child - a local child? A child is so innocent, it just breaks your heart to think of all the things they have to go through.”
Tuggle spoke of her initial involvement with Make-AWish at the children’s playground at MacArthur Park. As we were leaving, the school across the street emptied and the swings and monkey bars filled with happy, healthy kids for recess. It was on another morning in 2005 that Tuggle first got involved in Make-AWish.
“Someone contacted me and asked if I’d be interested in doing volunteering,” Tuggle said, flicking some playground sand off her shoe. “Of course, I was very aware of Make-A-Wish. It seems like a common household name, but I also thought it was [only] for terminally ill children.
“In fact, it’s for all children with life-threatening conditions. There’s the possibility it could have a sad story at the end, but in a lot of cases there’s a wonderful, happy ending.”
Tuggle ended up volunteering for a Make-A-Wish celebrity golf tournament that had an evening event at Central Flying Service.
“There was a little 6-yearold boy whose name was Jordan,” she recalled, “and his wish was to swim with the dolphins. There we were in this large hangar and all of a sudden Spider-Man startedflying through. I don’t know where they got this guy.
“Jordan’s eyes were just lit up and then they let him know he was getting to go to Florida to swim with the dolphins.”
Florida wishes such as that and Disney World can be costly, so Make-A-Wish typically asks for a $5,000 donation to cover expenses. Some wishes cost less, others more. Tuggle said that at the end of the evening “seven to 10 hands went up when asked to donate.”
She continued, “I went home that night and thought, ‘Oh, that has really touched my heart,’ and I couldn’t believe so many people had raised their hands.
“So that very next morning I called and said I wanted a wish to be granted and wanted to donate $5,000.”
Tuggle is the president of Apartment Hunters and Arkansas Suites (Tuggle Services Inc.) with offices in Little Rock and Northwest Arkansas. It’s a family affair. Her husband, Paul, is vice president, and she says that Weston, their computer-savvy 16-year-old son (probably a redundant description), is “the marketing guru” for the company.
After she wrote that first check, the wheels started turning. Tuggle wanted her employees “to experience this amazing wish,” so several months later Make-A-Wish brought a little boy to her office whose wish was to visit Disney World.
“We all dressed up as Disney characters and he was just thrilled,” Tuggle said. “Of course, we all cried and just fell to pieces.”
Tuggle’s enthusiasm is infectious, as evidenced when she included the Arkansas Apartment Association in another wish revelation.
“Once they saw that,” she said, “they jumped on board, too. We split the wish every year now. Last year and this year there were 200 people in the room and there was not a dry eye.”
Last year’s donation sent a young man (he was 18, the last year of eligibility) to the Super Bowl. Of course, he was thrilled, but wishes truly reach far beyond a single person.
“It’s not just the child who is going through this,” Tuggle said. “You can imagine the stress on the parents. For them to just be able to get away and not worry about money or medical care - they can just go and have a good time and relax.”
Tuggle notes that Make-A-Wish does not turn down any child who has been referred, usually by a doctor. Over the past five years, the Mid-South chapter (which includes Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee) has averaged 230 wishes each year - 128 in Arkansas alone.
“We’ve granted them all,” Tuggle says of the wishes. “As long as they fit the criteria, we grant every single wish that comes through.
“That’s the great thing about Make-A-Wish. You can just see the turn fromso much hurt to excitement. When they get the news they’re going somewhere, it’s something to look forward to.
“And I seriously believe that hope saves lives.”
But sometimes hope needs a little PR.
“Awareness is the key,” Tuggle said. “There are children who could have a wish who are unaware of it. If we spread the word, we can make it happen.”
This year’s Make-A-Wish Farm Fresh Wishes is sold out, but there are many ways for the public to participate. And some people or businesses cannot afford single-handedly to send a child to Disney World, “but there are opportunities to become volunteers or airport greeters, and they can experience that same feeling. Or you can go in together to grant wishes.
“We also have a Wish Closet and it’s very, very important for us.”
At Make-A-Wish there’s a large room full of Disney costumes, toys, cards, games and other items relating to making dreams come true. The Wish Closet is always in need of restocking - especially the costumes.
“That Minnie Mouse costume is getting pretty worn,” Tuggle said, laughing. “I wore it in 2005 and I can’t tell you how many times it’s been used.” For more information on how to donate or become involved with Make-A-Wish Mid-South, contact Development Officer Carol Isom at (501) 376-9474, or by email at cisom@midsouth.wish.org.
High Profile, Pages 36 on 10/27/2013