GM Helps Kids Make A Wish
FOR RELEASE: January 17, 2002General Motors To Help Make Dreams Come True At The 2002 Olympic Winter Games
Nine Very Special Children are Heading to Salt Lake City
DETROIT- In February, thousands of athletes from around the world will converge on Salt Lake City to live out their dreams.
Some very special children from across the country will also be there to fulfill their dreams, thanks to the generosity of the General Motors Corporation (GM), the official domestic automotive sponsor of the U.S. Olympic Team through 2004.
Experiencing the thrill of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games will be nine Make-A-Wish Foundation® children and their families.
Wishes granted during the Games will include Opening and Closing Ceremonies, competitions and opportunities to meet Olympians. All the children and their families will spend five days in Salt Lake City, courtesy of GM.
"We're really inspired by the stories of these special children," says Steve Tihanyi, Director of Marketing Alliances & Regional Operations for GM. "Their courage, character, and strength are qualities that represent the true Olympic Spirit and we're happy that we can support them in achieving their own, very personal Olympic dreams."
Like Kevin Pearson, Jr., 15, from Lithonia, Ga., who helped kick off the Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Torch Relay on Dec. 4 in his own hometown. "I battle sickle cell anemia every day," he says. "I miss a lot of school, and when I'm in crisis, the pain is almost unbearable. But I still make good grades and find a way to stay active. [Carrying the Olympic Flame] was the coolest thing ever!" he recalls. "I didn't want to ask to do it as part of my wish because I thought that would be asking too much [in addition to attending the Games]. But thankfully I got to do it anyway." Adds the excited teen about the upcoming Games, "I really want to see snow!" [Photo of Kevin Pearson, Jr. attached.]
Or Kyle Desmond, 16, from Coldwater, Mich., who is wheelchair-bound due to muscular dystrophy. Although the young sports enthusiast's participation in the Torch Relay was unfortunately sidelined due to injuries sustained in a Christmas car accident, he looks forward to attending the upcoming Games. "I am a huge sports fan, but unable to play. I've learned that you can still be part of a team and be involved by being a manager," he says. "I don't let my disability stand in my way and I don't use it as an excuse. I see myself as being just like everyone else. Going to the Olympics is something I have always wanted to do," says the teen. "I just never dreamed I would have the chance."
And Mark Snyder, 17, from Moon Township, Pa., says he didn't let a kidney transplant "stop me from living my life." An avid ice hockey player and fan, Mark says he particularly looks up to his parents "because they have never let me down." In fact, his father donated his own kidney to his son. About participating in the Torch Relay and attending the Games, Mark says, "I'm in pure bliss."
Other children who will benefit from GM's program include Jason Black, 13, from North Woodmere, N.Y.; Shiri Gumbiner, 12, from Brentwood, Calif.; Jacqueline "Jackie" Mendoza, 10, from Whittier, Calif.; Neal Nanassy, 10, from New Florence, Pa.; Paul Regoord, 19, from Rochester, N.Y.; and Christopher Ruff, 15, from Steamboat Springs, Colo.
General Motors, the world's largest vehicle manufacturer and official domestic automotive partner of the U.S. Olympic team through 2004, designs, builds, and markets cars and trucks worldwide. By providing transportation solutions for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games through its significant commitments to the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) and the Salt Lake Organizing Committee (SLOC), GM is helping to bring the Olympic Spirit to communities everywhere.
Together, the International Union, UAW and GM are committed to the largest sponsorship in the history of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and have helped to grant hundreds of children's wishes all across America. The Make-A-Wish Foundation grants the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy.
In support of this sponsorship, GM employees and GM dealers in communities around the country have personally committed to volunteerism, fundraising and wish granting... truly making smiles standard equipment for these courageous children.
UAW-GM's support comes from the UAW-GM Center for Human Resources, which develops and administers education, training and retraining programs and joint activities for approximately 140,000 UAW-represented GM employees.
