By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — A $6,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois will help a young adult fighting cancer fulfill a lifelong wish.
The foundation presented that grant, supported by the Dr. Louis & Violet Rubin Fund, to Nik’s Wish on Wednesday outside the UW Health SwedishAmerican Regional Cancer Center.
The money will be used to grant a wish to one adult cancer patient between the ages of 18 and 24 in the region this year. Nik’s Wish grants a wide range of requests, from new laptops to concert or sporting event tickets, adventurous vacations, meeting celebrities and more. Some wishes celebrate the completion of treatment while others allow for a much-needed break to rejuvenate.
The nonprofit is named for Nikolas Ritschel, who died from Synovial sarcoma, a rare type of cancer, in 2012 at the age of 21. Friday would have been his 31st birthday.
“When a wish is granted it’s like I can see my son smiling,” said Kelli Ritschel Boehle, who founded the nonprofit in her son’s memory. “Just knowing that we have $6,000 to grant another wish right here in Rockford, Illinois, makes me smile because I know he’s smiling.”
Related: Grants up to $3,500 available for youth-led groups in the Rockford area
Nikolas Ritschel was diagnosed with cancer before his 18th birthday, and was granted a wish from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. But when he discovered that young adults older than 17 do not qualify for the program, he wanted to help. The night before his death, he asked his mother to help those who don’t qualify get a wish, too.
To date, the organization has delivered more than 235 wishes in 36 states. Granting each wish costs an average $6,000, and the nonprofit is supported entirely by volunteers.
“We’re so excited about the next wish we’ll deliver,” she said.
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The gift from the Community Foundation is part of its annual community grants program, which awards about $1.5 million each year to organizations in Boone, Winnebago, Stephenson and Ogle counties.
“Nik’s Wish does such amazing things. These are folks that are going through the hardest of times,” said Dan Ross, president of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois. “Just to be able to bring a little bit of joy to the lives of someone that’s struggling, you can’t ask for a better thing.”
One patient at the SwedishAmerican Regional Cancer Center will have a wish granted because of the grant and Nik’s Wish.
“We are thankful to have Nik’s Wish right here in our community, helping to put a smile on our cancer patients’ faces when they need it the most,” said Natalie Wilson, director of the cancer center. “They are a wonderful organization, doing wonderful things not only in our community but throughout the nation. We thank their team of volunteers for helping our most vulnerable patients.”
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas .