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HOPE:
Never underestimate the capacity of the human spirit. Meet some
folks who want to soar against all odds.
Published Thursday, December
25, 2003, in the San Jose Mercury News
Playgrounds Unlimited employees Martell Rodriguez, center, and
Ignacio Cisneros, left, apply rubber made from recycled tires
to the Miracle House play area. |
Miracle
House children will play safely
Wish
3 • the
unsafe wooden play structure has been carted away. A fresh concrete
foundation has been poured and cushioned padding installed. Sometime
in mid-January, a new play structure will be delivered and set up.
And then the kids who live at Miracle House can begin to enjoy their
present from Wish Book readers.
The Sunnyvale facility is home to four boys and two girls who have
some form of autism, a complex neurological disorder that affects
the functioning of the brain. The home is run by Pacific Autism Center
for Education, where the children all attend classes.
"The kids are totally, totally excited,'' says Julie Leigh Domeny,
PACE's development director. "This is a big deal. It's going to be
gorgeous and perfect.''
Books
Aloud production manager John Leventon, left, and volunteer
reader Scott Martin test out the new recording equipment in
the new studio. Books Aloud can now double its recording, duplicating
and Brailing (for the blind) capabilities. |
Sharing
the magic of books
Wish
6 • wish
Book gifts went to work immediately at Books Aloud, where volunteer
readers can now record twice as many books on tape for the visually,
physically and learning disabled.
Donations provided recording equipment to furnish an entire second
studio at the non-profit organization, which this year moved into
spacious quarters on the lower level of the new Martin Luther King
Jr. Library in downtown San Jose.
Last week, volunteer reader Scott Martin and production manager John
Leventon took the new studio for a spin, with Scott delving into a
recording of the popular murder mystery "The Da Vinci Code,'' by Dan
Brown.
In addition to the studio, Wish Book donations provided gifts for
one of Books Aloud's most dedicated volunteers, Jennifer Crandall,
who received a light rail pass, a featherweight sewing machine and
a fire alarm system for the hearing impaired.
Eleven year-old Amparo Gonzalez grins with pride at his mother
and physical therapists as he test rides his new Adventure model
bicycle in San Jose. The bike was bought by Mercury News Wishbook
donors and was custom for him by Robb Cyester at Freedom Concepts.
Amparo plans to wear a helmet during his regular outings on
his bike. |
A
brand new ride for Amparo
Wish
9 • if
the energy in Amparo Gonzalez' smile could somehow be harnessed, it
would light up every Christmas tree in the Bay Area today. The reason
for that megawatt grin? Amparo has his new custom-made bicycle, thanks
to Wish Book readers.
It's fire-engine red with a water bottle and a bell. The frame is
painted with the words "Adventure'' and "Freedom,'' and those couldn't
be more appropriate descriptions for what this special bike gives
Amparo, 11, who has severe cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair.
Amparo had tried out a similar bike in therapy sessions and had been
wishing for his own for more than two years. The bike has adjustable
everything - handlebars, back support, pedals - and can grow along
with Amparo. When his mom, Martina, told him the red model delivered
to their South San Jose home was his very own, for keeps, he let out
a satisfied "Yesssssss!''
And then he executed a perfect big swoopy turn before heading off
down the alley.
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Thanks to Mercury News readers, all of the wishes in the 2003
Holiday Wish Book will be fulfilled.
Here are the details:
 Wish
1 • Diana, a budding artist and scholar who
has dyslexia, San Jose: computer, printer, graphics software,
prom tickets and a dress for her high school prom.
Nominating agency: TransAccess, San Jose.
Wish 2 • Donations will help Pathways Hospice
Foundation provide groceries, children's toys, counseling and respite
care to families who seek its services. Nominating agency:
Pathways Hospice Foundation, Mountain View.
Wish 3 • The six kids who live at Miracle
House, a residential home for young people with autism, Sunnyvale:
a new padded play area to replace one that wasn't safe. (See story
at left.)
Nominating agency: Pacific Autism Center for Education,
Sunnyvale.
 Wish
4 • 2,000 young people who participate in Boys
& Girls Club activities at four clubhouses, San Jose: Field trips
in 2004 to such places as Great America and the Exploratorium, plus
a trip to Disneyland for top achievers. Nominating agency:
Boys & Girls Clubs of Silicon Valley, Milpitas.
 Wish
5 • More than 1,000 children in protective
custody in Alameda County: holiday gifts, shoes, socks, clothing,
bedding, school supplies. Nominating agency: Adopt an
Angel, Fremont.
Wish
6 • Jennifer Crandall, volunteer for Books
Aloud, San Jose: light-rail pass for a year, portable sewing machine,
fire alarm system designed for the deaf. (See story at left.) Books
Aloud, which provides books on tape to the blind and physically
handicapped, also received recording equipment for its new studio
at the Martin Luther King Jr. Library in downtown San Jose.
Nominating agency: Books Aloud, San Jose. Special thanks
to Kate Ebneter and Guitar Showcase.
 Wish
7 • Disabled young adults who participate
in the Friendship Club's Job Program, San Jose: two new computers,
special keyboards with enlarged keys and other features, screen-reading
and font-enlarging software, other adaptive devices. Nominating
agency: Young Life Capernaum Project, San Jose.
 Wish
8 • Homeless and troubled youth who use the
services of Our House and the Bill Wilson Center: gift certificates
to purchase work clothing, blankets, backpacks, food, basic hygiene
items. Nominating agency: Emergency Housing Consortium,
San Jose; Bill Wilson Center, Santa Clara.
Wish
9 • Amparo Gonzalez, an 11-year-old with cerebral
palsy, San Jose: a custom-made therapy tricycle. (See story at
left.) Nominating agency: California Children Services
of Santa Clara County, San Jose. Special thanks to Robb Cyester of
National Mobility & Seating.
 Wish
10 • Children who get dental care through the
Dentists With a Heart program, Santa Clara County: X-rays, basic
dental services and dental surgeries. Nominating agency:
The Health Trust, San Jose.
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