The Make-A-Wish Foundation will hold itsannual Walk for Wishes Saturday, Oct. 1, at 5 p.m. at the ExchangeClub Park in Brookhaven.

    This is the eighth Walk for Wishes, which will be accompanied bythe second annual Ride for Wishes at the park.

    Last year, Exchange Club members sold wristbands and opened up thepark for people to ride all they want. This year will feature thewristbands again.

    “We’re trying to make it so that anything we make can go straightto the foundation,” said Jane Walsh, development manager forMake-A-Wish.

    The walk is a 5K and starts at 5 p.m. followed by the rides openingfrom 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Teams and sponsors have been raising fundsfor the foundation and will turn in their donation totals, butevent organizers said anyone is welcome to come walk and ride therides.

    Stan Foster, Exchange Club president, said all the proceeds fromwristbands sold for the rides will go directly to Make-A-Wish.

    “It (Make-A-Wish) is a great organization, and we’re happy to helpin some small way,” he said. “We’ve had a great relationship withworking with them. We hope everybody will come out and support. Ithelps people in Mississippi as well as the Lincoln County area.It’s great when you can see a real impact in your owncommunity.”

    Walsh said there are Make-A-Wish children in the area, includingones from Columbia, Jayess, Hazlehurst, McComb and Tylertown. Shesaid Mississippi has a total of 89 children altogether awaitingwish fulfillment.

    She reported that the average cost of a child’s wish is about$5,000.

    She said there are many teams that have been organized and workingalready to raise money, as well as seven sponsors in Brookhavenincluding Brookhaven Moose Family Center 1968, State Bank andTrust, Bank of Brookhaven, Bank of Franklin, Brookhaven Check Cash,Insurance Risk Managers and King’s Daughters Medical Center.

    The Walk for Wishes hits home for one Brookhavenite who happens tobe the co-chair of the foundation in town.

    Casey Martin started out being involved in Make-A-Wish with hermother, Judy Arnold, when they heard Walsh come speak on thefoundation about eight years ago.

    Martin’s daughter, Hope, who is 9 now, has aicardi syndrome, andMartin and Arnold wanted to be involved with the foundation.Aicardi syndrome is a rare genetic disorder found only in females,according to Martin.

    “We (Martin and Arnold) just started out as a team of two, goingaround asking for people to donate,” Martin said. “And then Jane(Walsh) asked if we wanted to be co-chairs for Brookhaven, so we’vebeen doing that ever since.”

    Martin and Arnold still put together a team of their own each year,and she said they have already raised enough to grant a wish.

    She said incorporating the Exchange Club with Ride for Wishes hasbeen a really good idea.

    “We’re really hoping for a better turnout this year,” she said. “Itwas good last year, but kind of kicked off slow because it was thefirst time. So I’m hoping for it to be a little better thisyear.”

    Foster, who is also involved as a sponsor with State Bank andTrust, is also hoping for significant support from teams, sponsorsand the community this year.

    “We have a team member who as a child was granted a wish, so itmakes it that much more special,” Foster said. “We’re close to ourgoal of funds raised, inches away from it. We’re just hoping forgood weather and a good turnout to come support Make-A-Wish.”