Students build 'dream' houses for children with life-threatening illnesses

By Isabella Zainyeh
Posted 4/18/17

By ISABELLA ZAINYEH Rhode Island students have teamed up with the non-profit wish-granting organization, Wishes Come True Foundation - Rosemary's Wish Kids, to build five play houses, for children with life-threatening illnesses. This program, which is

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Students build 'dream' houses for children with life-threatening illnesses

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Rhode Island students have teamed up with the non-profit wish-granting organization, Wishes Come True Foundation - Rosemary’s Wish Kids, to build five play houses, for children with life-threatening illnesses.

This program, which is part of a five-semester project put together by Bryant Professor Chris Ratcliffe, is designed to teach the students how to research, plan and handle an event for a non-profit.

“The Bryant students do all the planning behind the project, and the high school students build the houses,” said Rosemary’s Wish Kids president Tom McGovern.

“The Bryant students set up a GoFundMe page to raise the money for this project and have received donations from Walmart and various lumber yards,” said McGovern. “The students building the houses then have free reign to be as creative as they want in the actual design of the houses.”

McGovern said that there isn’t any set method to choosing which children the houses are built for, they just try to choose children in the area. This year, there are two houses being built by construction trades students at the Warwick Area Career and Technical Center, one is Irish cottage-themed and the other is surf shack-themed beach house.

“The houses will be presented to the children on April 26 at the Bryant campus. Following the ceremony, the houses will be transported to each child’s home,” said McGovern.

In addition to the families, the entire Bryant class of about 200 students will be invited to the ceremony, as well as the 50 to 60 high school students who built the houses, McGovern added.

The Wishes Come True Foundation is a non-profit organization based in Warwick, founded in October 1982. It is the oldest wish granting organization in Rhode Island, and the first of its kind in the area. They grant wishes to children ages 3-18 who live in Rhode Island or southeastern Massachusetts and have a life-threatening illness. In their first year they granted wishes to 12 children, now they have grown to average one wish each week.

“I think it’s a great project,” said McGovern. “I’m curious to see exactly what the students come up with.”

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