Queen Máxima brought some sunshine to the Make-A-Wish Foundation Netherlands headquarters on Wednesday, visiting in honour of the organisation’s 30th anniversary.
Dressed in a bright yellow trouser suit from Zara, the Dutch queen learned more about how the Make-A-Wish Foundation helps sick children’s dreams come true.
According to Make-A-Wish, “Every day an average of three families in the Netherlands hear that their child has a serious, sometimes even life-threatening illness. Make-A-Wish Netherlands offers children between 3 and 18 years of age confidence and strength for the future by fulfilling their dearest wish.”
Queen Máxima spoke with medical professionals and parents of “wish children” during her visit to understand the massive impact that wish fulfilment can have for a sick child. She also heard more about the Wish Journey, which is the process of wish request to wish fulfilment.
Make-A-Wish Netherlands fulfils more than six hundred wishes a year, ranging from meeting celebrities to arranging Star Wars-themed days, trips to the beach, or becoming a police offer for a day. Make-A-Wish Foundation International, which is the largest wish-fulfilling organization in the world, has a presence in 50 countries and fulfils 15,000 wishes a year to children facing serious illnesses.
Queen Máxima also met Make-A-Wish volunteers during her visit Wednesday and learned about the important role they play within the organisation.
Before departing, the Queen was gifted with the jubilee edition of the book 30 Facestories. It features the remarkable stories of thirty children and how their wishes were fulfilled by the organisation during the past thirty years.
Hanneke Verburg, director of Make-A-Wish Netherlands, shared his excitement about the royal visit.
“We are greatly honoured and happy with the arrival of our Queen today. Her visit is a big compliment for the hard work that all our employees and volunteers do day in, day out for seriously ill children in the Netherlands. Our 30-year anniversary has acquired a royal touch in this way. ”
