SAN DIEGO — The Make-A-Wish Foundation has been granting wishes for children with critical illnesses for decades now, but just recently a Del Norte High School student turned somewhat into a genie himself, by starting a club on campus that raises money for the organization.
Just minutes before the lunch bell rang, the Make-A-Wish Club on campus set up a carnival. They call it Wish Week. Other fundraising efforts included throwing water balloons at their teachers.
The club's president, Aidan Drykerman, was inspired by his best friend, who was granted a wish to visit Hawaii.
"Just being so close to someone who has been so positively impacted by this foundation, it just made me feel so good that I'm doing all of this work for a great cause," Drykerman said.
Through fundraisers on campus and across the community all year long, they're almost at their $10,000 goal. The students then work directly with Make-A-Wish to select whose wish will be granted.
"It doesn't mean that they're terminally ill, it just means they'll be impacted for the duration of their life. So we help them and just give them a spark of joy," Drykerman added.
The club's compassion for others is sure to leave a lasting legacy at the school, for years to come.
"We take it as a privilege to be healthy, we take it for granted, so it really spreads awareness and we want to support these kids in any way we can," said Anastasia Hanna, the club's vice president.
"It's so powerful and nice because not only is our hard working paying off, we're making an impact and this kid's life is hopefully going to be so much better after this," said Reagan Kelley, the club's social media manager.
"All of us just want to make sure we become the best people we can be," Emma Gizicki added.
Then, just like that, the bell rang again and as quickly as it was set up, the campus carnival was broken down and these little genies returned to class.
"For them to have that broad view of what's going on. There are kids out there who are less fortunate than them and they're spending their time to impact lives like that," said Del Norte teacher Riley Froom, the club's advisor.
If you’d like to donate to help grant some wishes, you can do so here.
WATCH RELATED: 'Otter Chaos' brings laughter to Make-A-Wish children (Jan. 31, 2022)