Make a difference in the life of a child battling a life-threatening medical condition



MILWAUKEE -- Stories of hope, strength and joy flooded the air waves on 95.7 BIG FM Thursday, December 1st -- as the Make-A-Wish Radio-A-Thon got underway.



Thursday was the first day of the Make-A-Wish Radio-A-Thon. The event raises money to grant wishes for hundreds of Wisconsin children suffering from life-threatening illnesses.

If you tune into 95.7 BIG FM Thursday and Friday, you'll hear from kids like Rebekah Stege. Her wish to visit Zion National Park was granted this past September.

95.7 BIG FM



"By then I was doing pretty good and I could climb around and it was like everything was back to normal, so it was like a celebration of my recovery," said 17-year-old Stege.

The trip grave Stege something to look forward to during her fight against ANCA Vasculitis -- an autoimmune disease that, at one point, prevented her from walking.

Rebekah Stege



"This has given her hope that, yeah things get tough in life, but we have to be patient and persistent and keep at it," said Shannon Stege, Rebekah's mom.

Make-A-Wish Wisconsin hopes to raise $200,000 through the Radio-A-Thon to grant wishes this holiday season.

"We grant a lot of wishes during this time. A lot of children living with life-threatening illnesses are taken out of school because of doctor visits and treatments and hospital stays -- and so parents don't want to pull them out of school more than they have to," said Forrest Doolen, director of marketing and communications for Make-A-Wish Wisconsin.



Stege is healthy enough to play music again. Her mom says her wish helped her get here.



Make-A-Wish Wisconsin granted a record 370 wishes in 2016 -- and hopes to grant 380 in 2017.

FOX6 News partnered with Make-A-Wish and 95.7 BIG FM for the Radio-A-Thon. It runs from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on December 1st and 2nd.

For more information about Make-A-Wish Wisconsin or to learn how you can make a difference, please call 800-236-WISH or visit wisconsin.wish.org.