Imagine a child who's spent far too much time in hospital rooms steps into a Lego-themed cottage at the Sunshine Foundation Dream Village in Davenport, Florida, eyes practically popping out of their head. Next door, another family is settling into a Space-themed adventure pad. Down the path? Snow White's cottage is waiting for its next guests. This is the Sunshine Foundation Dream Village, where fairy tales aren't just stories, they're where families actually stay.
And the woman making it all happen? That's Wanda Curtis, Davenport's own wish-granting wizard.
Wanda runs the entire Dream Village, complete with themed cottages, a swimming pool, mini golf course, and constant stream of visiting families, with just one other employee. Yes, you read that right. Two people. The rest? An incredible network of volunteers who've bought into Wanda's vision of making dreams come true for chronically ill children across America.
These kids often find themselves in a tough spot. Their conditions are serious and life-changing, but they don't qualify for organizations that focus on terminal illnesses. The Sunshine Foundation steps in to say, "Your dream matters too."
Table of Contents
The Sunshine Foundation: Fifty Years of Making Magic
The foundation's origin story is pretty remarkable. It all started with a Pennsylvania policeman who decided that sick kids deserved something special. As the organization took off, he noticed a pattern: nearly every child dreamed of the same destination. Florida. Theme parks. Sunshine. Adventure.
So they built the Dream Village and opened it in 1990, and it's been granting wishes ever since to over 21K kids! This year marks the big 5-0 for the Sunshine Foundation, and Wanda's still going strong, carrying that policeman's torch into the next half-century.
The Gala Where Fundraising Meets Fancy Dress
If you think planning a wedding is stressful, try organizing a 300-person gala where everything, and we mean everything, is donated. The silent auction items? Donated. The live auction packages? Donated. Those incredible vacation getaways? You guessed it, donated.
Volunteers work year-round reaching out to businesses across the entire country, sweet-talking donations and building relationships. In today's economy, it's gotten tougher to secure sponsors, but Wanda keeps finding ways to make it work.
And here's where Wanda's genius really shines: she turns the whole thing into a party. Each gala has a theme, and everyone, guests and volunteers alike, goes all out with their costumes. We're talking full disco regalia one year, Halloween extravaganzas another, and throwback decades where you might see flappers mingling with '80s rockers. It's fundraising that doesn't feel like work, it feels like the best party of the year.
Building Compassion, One Volunteer at a Time
The Dream Village isn't just changing lives for the families who visit, it's transforming the local community too. Throughout the year, students and residents jump in to help with craft shows, golf tournaments, and fundraisers at local businesses. It's an endless cycle of events, and somehow, Wanda keeps it all moving.
For young volunteers, the experience is nothing short of life-changing. Tech-savvy students keep the gaming systems running and manage social media campaigns. Others become the foundation's storytellers, documenting families' magical moments and sharing their joy with the world. Shy kids discover confidence they didn't know they had. Compassion becomes more than a buzzword, it becomes something they live.
Watching these young people blossom into more confident, caring individuals? That's its own kind of magic.
The Superstar Who Never Stops
Wanda Curtis devotes virtually every waking moment to this mission. While the rest of us are binge-watching Netflix or scrolling through our phones, she's figuring out how to fund the next family's dream vacation, recruit more volunteers, or fix whatever needs fixing at the village.
From a Pennsylvania policeman's big heart to a beloved fixture in Davenport, the Sunshine Foundation keeps writing its story one family at a time. And Wanda? She's the unsung hero making sure the happily-ever-afters keep coming, proving that one person with unstoppable dedication really can change the world.
Or at least make it a whole lot brighter for the kids who need it most.
