FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, April 8, 1997
CONTACT:
Mike Markarian, (301) 585-2591, MikeM@fund.org
According to a statement from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, "the Board reaffirmed the Foundation's policy which allows each of its 81 active chapters to decide locally whether or not to grant wishes, including hunting, based on local community standards." The Make-A-Wish Foundation has been marred in controversy ever since its Minnesota chapter sent a teenager to Alaska to kill a Kodiak bear, and its Pennsylvania chapter sent a teenager to Alaska to kill a moose. The Fund for Animals send the following letter to the Foundation:
April 8, 1997
Mr. Stephen E. Torkelson, President and C.E.O.
Make-A-Wish Foundation of America
100 West Clarendon, Suite 2200
Phoenix, Arizona 85013-3518
Dear Mr. Torkelson:
In our discussions last year concerning bear and moose trophy hunting trips granted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation's Minnesota and Pennsylvania chapters, we were informed that your Board of Directors established a task force to determine a national policy on hunting wishes. While that task force had the gestation period of an elephant, and while no one from your organization had the courtesy to inform us of its decision, we have learned from media news reports that the Board of Directors has decided to allow each state chapter to make its own decisions on hunting trips.
I would like to raise several concerns over this decision. It is simply ironic that an organization founded on the principles of kindness and compassion, an organization that helps thousands of children, would put its stamp of approval on arming those children and sending them on trips to assassinate helpless animals. And it is sad that the negative publicity over the Make-A-Wish Foundation's hunting trips has hurt your individual chapters financially, and may prevent children from receiving the wishes they deserve. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Canada and your chapters in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, and St. Louis have expressed opposition to hunting wishes and concern that this fiasco is costing them donations. Celebrities such as Kevin Nealon have canceled fundraising appearances for Make-A-Wish chapters, and the San Francisco chapter reported that it lost as much as $750,000 in donations because of the hunting controversy.
You may have thought that the controversy had died down. But just last month, actress Elvira refused to participate in a Make-A-Wish fundraiser in Syracuse, New York. Her manager wrote: "Over the years, she has made many contributions of auction items to various chapters of Make-A-Wish Foundation. Regrettably, she can no longer in good conscience make a contribution until the national office of Make-A-Wish Foundation signs a statement of assurance . . . promising that all chapters will not allow the wishes for hurting or killing of animals."
We urge you once again to set a national policy against the granting of hunting trips. We hope that you will put an end to this sad stain on your organization's good reputation, and that our organizations can work together to promote compassion for both children and animals.
Sincerely,
Michael Markarian
Director of Campaigns