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This months
Volunteer Spotlight is Martha Jaye Johnson from Brevard,
North Carolina. Martha Jaye was born
and raised in Brevard, North Carolina and left for only a brief period to
attend the University of North Carolina Greensboro for a year. After graduation she held a job as a
secretary and had two children - Jeff, who now lives in Georgia, and Julie who
resides in Fletcher, North Carolina.
In hearing Martha Jaye talk about
Make-A-Wish, her compassion and devotion are evident. At times words could not be formed to express
what Make-A-Wish means to her. It is
evident that Martha would do just about anything for the organization and the
pursuit of our mission. Her only
complaint - that she wants to do more! Martha
Jaye’s love for the organization is obvious just by looking at her car, which
has a big Make-A-Wish sticker on the gas tank and another one on the other side
just to make sure that people on both sides can see the logo; she simply cannot
get enough.
Martha Jaye became involved with
Make-A-Wish around ten years ago through her grandson Jacob who at the time was
six. Jacob was in the hospital in
Charlotte where he was to receive a Kidney Transplant. While in the hospital, Jacob told his doctor
that he wanted to go to Disney World.
His doctor responded saying that one day, when he was better maybe he
will get the chance to go. His doctor
then referred Jacob to Make-A-Wish and sure enough when Jacob recovered, he got
his dream trip to Disney World. At the
time of Jacob’s wish, Martha Jaye had never heard of Make-A-Wish, little did
she know she was about to experience firsthand the organization she feels so
passionately about today. Martha Jaye
explained her daughter’s reaction to the wish experience and revealed how she
could not believe all that the organization did for them. Martha Jaye’s connection to Make-A-Wish
really began the day before her Grandson Jacob was to go on his wish. One of the wish granters who was assigned to
Jacobs wish worked for Progress Energy, a key supporter for Make-A-Wish. Progress Energy threw a party for Jacob to
celebrate his departure for his wish.
The celebration consisted of cake, friends and gifts for Jacob to enjoy on his wish trip.
This party really fueled Martha
Jaye’s desire to help. Martha explains,
“I thought right at that time, you know Make-A-Wish can do all this for these
children to make their lives better and I don’t see why I can't give some of my
time to get involved.” And get involved
is just what Martha Jaye did. Martha
Jaye decided that day she was committed to Make-A-Wish and has been
volunteering ever since. Throughout the
10 years Martha has been volunteering for Make-A-Wish, she has been a lead Wish
Granter as well as a volunteer at local events and festivals for Make-A-Wish in
the Western region. Martha Jaye has
experienced the ups and downs of being a wish granter revealing some of the heart-breaking
stories but those being overpowered by the stories of hope, strength and
joy. Wish-granting remains her favorite
position with Make-A-Wish, she enjoys working with the children and their
families through this exciting experience. “It is hard to explain, you have to
just see their expression and the way they act; their bright sparkling eyes and
big smiles as they discuss their upcoming adventure. The children have the opportunity to focus
their thoughts on a good time instead of what’s wrong with them for once.” Martha Jaye stays in touch with the
children and families of whom she helped out through their wish granting process so that they know we are thinking about them. This is just one example of the many extra steps Martha Jaye takes as a
volunteer, fulfilling her position to the fullest.
Martha Jaye was reminded of this
past Christmas eve of this connection she holds with each and every individual
she has worked with when she ran into the sister of one of her first wish
children. The sister recognized her
right away and they picked up right where they left off. Martha Jaye found out that this particular
wish child was now all grown up and doing very well for herself. This encounter really touched Martha Jaye; finding
out that the child was now well and living a normal life gave Martha Jaye hope
for the work that she does. Martha Jaye describes the impact
Make-A-Wish has had on her by explaining, “It is something that just gives you
such a wonderful feeling to be able to help these children and their families;
to get their minds off of what’s going on with them right now. After talking with the family and child you
get a closeness with them which is just wonderful.” She reveals her gratitude for Make-A-Wish by
stating she thinks everyone should work with Make-A-Wish. Our feelings here at Make-A-Wish are mutual
for Martha Jaye and we are forever grateful for all that she has done in assisting
the mission of Make-A-Wish. Without
volunteers such as Martha Jaye Johnson, the magic of making wishes come true
would not be possible.
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