Amidst the uncertainty of the current global health crisis, there has certainly been a tremendous impact on travel plans for vulnerable individuals or those in immunocompromised situations.
We shared the news back in March that Give Kids the World Village was closing temporarily due to the health crisis. But when they can reopen remains to be uncertain, now resulting in the unfortunate decision to begin laying off staff.
The open letter, written by Give Kids the World President & CEO Pamela Landwirth, stated that The Village hotel will remain closed “for an undetermined amount of time,” and that as a result, will lay off the majority of their staff, effective June 27th.
The letter states that, “The Make-A-Wish Foundation, our majority wish-granter partner, unexpectedly notified us that due to COVID-19, it would not be scheduling any wishes that involve travel or large groups, until a vaccine is in wide use.”
Landwirth also pointed out that despite the fact that theme parks are reopening in the coming weeks, there is still much uncertainty for what it would mean for vulnerable guests, including the children involved with their program. You can read the full letter on their Facebook page by clicking here.
Have you or someone you know traveled to Disney World via Give Kids the World? Let us know in the comments.
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My son was fortunate to receive his wish in March 2019. We stayed at GKTW and visited the theme parks. One of the reasons this was his wish was because he could visit as an alumni and be able to relive a part of his wish forever. We were able to visit this past December and it was just as magical as when we stayed there. My older son said “Everyone is so nice here. This is the way the world should be!” And he is right. There were tears when we had to say goodbye both times and I get teary just thinking about this magical place being closed and so many families not being able to experience this unforgettable wish. GKTW has had such an impact on my son. We instituted while being quarantined everyone had to have a create a theme dinner. My wish kid chose GKTW. We had ice cream for dinner and he designed a three hole put-put course inside the house for us to do. The memories of his wish will live on forever! Thank you to everyone that supports Make-A-Wish and Give Kids the World from the bottom of my heart!!!!
hello all,
yes our family is a make a wish family.our son James wish was granted June of 1996.we moved to central Florida in July of 2012 so our son would be able to volunteer at the village and be able to visit Disney as much as he wanted. see there is magic in the Give kids the world village.this place along side Disney has kept my son alive.i know what you are thinking,but it is true every time he was in the I>C>U we made a Disney vacation and his nurses would play Disney themed music and say get up James your going to Disney!I hope in all hope that we will be able to take James back to the GKTW village and Disney at least 1 more time.