Rising to the challenge: How Make-A-Wish Canada’s BC & Yukon Chapter is responding to an increasing need

Christie Buono is no amateur at granting wishes.

“My dad used to be in football for 47 years,” recalls Buono of her father, Wally Buono, former CFL player and coach. “One of his claims to fame is that he actually cut Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson from his team in Calgary,” she says. In 2022, a former teammate of her father’s called and explained that his daughter, Kim, had terminal cancer. Her dream: to meet The Rock.

Despite not really knowing Johnson personally, the father-daughter duo put their heads together to make it happen. In the end, the star recorded a video for Kim. Two days later, she passed away.

“The next day, this role at Make-A-Wish Canada became available,” recalls Buono, “and I felt like Kim and the universe were telling me to continue to grant wishes for kids just like her.”

Buono officially joined Make-A-Wish Canada, leading the B.C. and Yukon region in January 2023. “Our mission is to grant every life-changing wish for kids facing critical illness across the country,” she says. Since Buono took the reins, the BC and Yukon Chapter has seen a 250 percent increase in revenue. In 2024 alone, the chapter granted 275 wishes—up from 123 in 2022.

Wishes are more than just “nice-to-haves” for these children. Research shows that patients granted a wish were 2.5 times less likely to have an unplanned hospital visit, 1.9 times less likely to use the emergency department and improve the child’s adherence to treatment. They can be a turning point for a child, giving them strength, optimism and resilience. “A wish is more than a dream come true. It brings hope, light and moments where a child gets to simply be a kid again. It helps families breathe a little easier and reconnect to joy and possibility,” says Buono.

The past three years have been a period of tremendous growth for the BC and Yukon Chapter, but it has been no small undertaking. “I spent a lot of time listening and having meaningful conversations,” explains Buono. “It matters to me to build trust.”

Buono and her team have focused on strengthening relationships with donors, partners and volunteers, while ensuring their fundraising initiatives are scalable and sustainable. “It is important to us to create opportunities for people to feel genuinely connected to our work, like part of our extended team, and confident that their support is directly impacting the mission,” says Buono.

Bringing people together in this way is central to her leadership and to the chapter’s continued momentum. Adds Buono, “This success reflects our entire team and the incredible community across our region. We are here because of the collective effort behind it.”

But for Buono, this is just the beginning. “We certainly have more work to do in this chapter alone. We have almost 500 kids waiting for their wishes to be granted in B.C. and Yukon,” she says.

With a family legacy and background in sports, Buono says her vision “has always centred on showing up as her best every day, shining a light on the important work we do at Make-A-Wish Canada, and leading with excellence, heart and pride.”

“Fundraising is a lot of work, and anyone in this field will tell you it often can come with a lot of nos,” she says. Staying connected to why she does this work—and seeing the real-time impact of every donation—is what keeps her going. “It’s deeply meaningful and rewarding because wish kids and their families are the ones who inspire us every single day.”

To donate and learn more, visit makeawish.ca/chapters/british-columbia-and-yukon.

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