Here's What It Costs to Grant a Make-A-Wish

It's well-known that the Make-A-Wish organization fulfills the requests of seriously ill children for one-of-a-kind encounters with celebrities and experiences that would otherwise be unmanageable (for instance, deep-sea fishing or riding in a police car). But, until recently, the economics of granting wishes weren't often discussed.

According to Ad Age, the average cost of facilitating a wish is currently $10,130, a cost that’s been rising steadily: It’s up 30 percent from 2010. And the 36-year-old organization will soon appeal to a crowdsourcing platform for help footing that bill.

Ryan Hegseth, vice president of strategy at Make-A-Wish, says that the increased expense has come partially as a result of the kinds of wishes requested—more children want to travel than in years past.

To help offset some of that inflation, the organization is currently promoting the launch of Wishmaker, a fundraising platform that will allow donors to contribute directly to a specific child’s request, like having a companion dog or visiting Paris. The goal will be to help subsidize the 29,000 wishes granted worldwide to children between the ages of 3 and 18 each year.

The organization is hoping the platform will allow them to depend less on major donations from “legacy” donors and more on smaller, frequent amounts from crowdfunding sources that might be moved by a particular child’s story. Wishmaker is expected to be fully up and running—complete with a promotional push—by October.

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