Every year, students at Mead High School, or MHS, raise money to support Make a Wish Colorado, a nonprofit organization dedicated to fulfilling the wishes of children who have critical illnesses.
This year, the members of MSH’s student council felt inspired to raise money for one of Make a Wish Colorado’s donees specifically – Mead native Isaac Crane, an 8-year-old boy with type 1 Spinal Muscular Dystrophy who wishes to go to Disney World Resort. Motivated to turn Isaac’s wish into a reality, MHS’s student council organized Wish Week, a week all about Isaac, his life and his wish, according to Corby Tecu, a senior and student council member at MHS.
“No one deserves to go through the things that Isaac has gone through, so if we can support him in any way possible, that’s what we’re going to do,” Tecu said, “and that’s what we’ve tried to do this week.”
During Wish Week, which occurred last week, students at MHS drew upon Isaac’s wish to go to Disney World Resort, his love for the colors yellow and orange and his interest in the safari by dressing to these themes on respective spirit days. They held fundraisers both within the school and the community and, by Friday afternoon, they had raised $8,600 – nearly the entirety of their $10,000 goal for the week.
The finale of Wish Week took place on Friday, when MSH students and faculty came to school adorned in matching blue Make a Wish t-shirts and held an assembly to raise more money and celebrate Isaac.
At the assembly, pies were thrown at teachers’ faces, basketballs flew from the center court line into the net and, during each activity, more money was raised for Make a Wish Colorado. By the end of the assembly, nearly $600 had been earned. The most special part of the day, however, was Isaac and his family’s attendance and participation in the activities. Students celebrated the Crane family’s presence at the school by cheering for Isaac, decorating walls with signs attributed to him and escorting the Cranes down the hall with a performance by MHS’s marching band.
After the assembly on Friday, Tecu was impressed that MHS had already almost raised the entirety of their $10,000 goal before the basketball games at the high school that evening, where he expected the broader Mead community’s attendance and fiscal contributions towards Make a Wish Colorado. To this accomplishment, Tecu praised the MHS student body for their excellent participation during Wish Week, he said.
“It’s a group effort – student council puts it on but, at the end of the day, this is all about Isaac and that’s what we want everyone to understand,” Tecu continued. “We have this super awesome community in Mead and Isaac is a Mead kid.”
For Isaac’s father, Jeremiah Crane, MHS’s efforts to support children with critical illnesses, specifically Isaac, is a testament to the small community of Mead – “the Mead community is the best,” he said – as well as a testament to Isaac himself.
“Isaac is a lion,” Crane said. “I call him my little lion because he’s a fighter and he’s a winner – he was not supposed to be here and he still is.”
When Isaac was born, doctors informed the Crane family that, due to his genetic disorder, they didn’t expect Isaac to live past nine months old. Today, he is a couple of weeks away from turning nine-years-old. Isaac currently attends second grade at Mead Elementary School, or MES, a school which also fundraised last week for Make a Wish Colorado.
Although the funds raised by MHS go to Make a Wish Colorado instead of Isaac directly, the money raised by Colorado schools like MHS aid the nonprofit organization in its quest to fulfill the wishes of every child who qualifies for their services, including Isaac, according to Sarah Grosh, the director of community development for Make a Wish Colorado. Additionally, “it’s really sweet to have these schools love on kiddos to give them a little bit of extra help and keep them feeling positive while they wait for their wish,” Grosh said.
As a result of the pandemic, young Isaac has been waiting for his wish for two years, according to Crane. Right after being accepted into Make a Wish Colorado, the Crane family booked their trip to Disney World Resort but were devastated at the last minute when the resort closed due to the emerging pandemic, thus putting a halt to Isaac’s wish coming true.
“Isaac’s dream is to meet Mickey Mouse, the Disney princesses, Goofy and Donald Duck,” Crane said. Although the family’s plans to go to Disney World Resort are still contingent on COVID-19 mandates, “Isaac is super excited,” Crane continued. “We’re just trying to get that final push to have everything come together.”
Throughout the long process of granting Isaac’s wish, Crane is thankful to the Mead community for coming together to support his son. “(MHS) is a fantastic high school and (MES) is a great elementary school,” Crane said. “They’re all just fantastic people.”
Correction: This article has been altered to reflect the correct spelling of Corby Tecu's name.
