By Mike Grosz,
Wayne State
Sports Information Director
Last October, it was announced that Wayne State College was one of nine schools in NCAA Division II to earn a Make-A-Wish reveal as part of its fundraising and work by the Student Athlete Advisory Committee in the Wayne and surrounding area during the 2022-23 school year.
The Make-A-Wish reveal is a powerful moment/event where kids with critical illnesses find out their wishes coming true.
At Monday evening’s Ameritas Athletic Awards Banquet in the WSC Student Center, the Wayne State Student Athlete Advisory Committee made someone’s wish come true.
Here’s the story of Joe:
Joe was born with a hole in his heart and had three open heart surgeries (birth, six months and three years) early in his life to change the anatomy of his heart and make it a single ventricle heart.
He developed a slight problem at age seven resulting in another open-heart surgery. This surgery caused a heart block that required another surgery needed to give him a pacemaker.
Joe recovered from those surgeries and was healthy until the start of his eighth-grade year when the family found out he had heart failure. Much of that year was spent in the hospital months at a time, which led to another surgery to add a defibrillator and many smaller surgeries and procedures that included a picc line. Joe spent that year carrying a bag around to a line to his heart that supplied him with life-saving medication.
Last summer, on June 6, following a 17-hour surgery Joe had a new heart. He will have to continue taking many medications and have constant medical supervision the rest of his life, but he is able to be active and enjoy the things in life he loves again.
At Monday evening’s banquet, Wayne State’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee introduced Joe at the banquet and revealed his Make-A-Wish.
He was granted his wish of an online shopping spree that included items such as a Play Station 5, model airplane, speakers, headphones, gaming controllers and games along with golf clubs and sweatshirts.
