The Mississippi chapter of the Make-A-Wish Foundation is gearingup for the state’s annual installment of the Walk for Wishes, anational event that is the main foundation fundraiser inBrookhaven.

Walking teams are being formed for the 5K walk, which will beheld at the Brookhaven Exchange Club Park on Saturday, Oct. 11.Sign-in is at 8 a.m., and the walk begins at 9 a.m.

Community Development Coordinator Jane Walsh said that, besidesdonations, the walk is one of the foundation’s primary means ofraising funds for granting wishes to children with life-threateningmedical conditions. The fundraising goal for the Brookhaven eventis $20,000, she said.

Donations will be taken up at the walk and prizes awardedafterward.

“It takes a lot of money to grant a wish,” Walsh said. “Somechildren want computers, some want to go on trips. A wish may costaround $2,000, or it may cost $15,000 or $20,000.”

Walsh said the average cost per wish is $5,000, and more than100 wishes have been submitted to the foundation in Mississippialone.

So far, five Brookhaven walking teams have been formed. Toregister a new team or get more information on the event,interested people may contact Walsh at 1-800-819-4072.

McCall Creek’s Monica David can testify to the impactMake-A-Wish has on its wish kids.

Her daughter, Olivia, 7, who suffers from cerebral palsy,epilepsy and other ailments, was recently granted a wish throughthe foundation. She traveled to Kissimmee, Fla., to the Give Kidsthe World Village for a weeklong, expenses paid vacation ofnormalcy, courtesy of Make-A-Wish.

“No amount of money in the world can approach that feeling – tosee your child enjoy herself and forget about her illness for aweek,” David said. “To have a small part in the life of a specialchild and his or her family is priceless – allowing them to be aregular kid for a week is priceless.”