Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee

09/11/2026

Mark your calendars!
Washtopia Hermitage
3925 Lebanon Pike
Hermitage, TN 37076

09/09/2026

Please consider nominating Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee for this award with Golf Status. $10,000 would grant 4-5 wishes for our kids!

Info that you need to fill out nomination is in the comments.

Forward to your friends and family. Thank you!!

Play It Forward awards a $10,000 donation to a nonprofit or cause using golf to do good. Learn how to nominate a golf event, the nomination criteria, key dates, and about past winners.

09/08/2026

Who wants to join us for Bingo??
Seeking sponsors and players

09/01/2026

Today marks Day 1 of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. This is something I am very passionate about and it’s been part of my everyday life for almost 30 years now.

Over the past 13 years, Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee has granted over 200 wishes to children battling cancer. More than 165 of those children’s family have had to say goodbye to their child far too soon.

Childhood cancer doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t care about age, race, religion, or your socioeconomic status. It touches families everywhere!

A few facts you may not know:
15,340 children and teens are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in the United States in 2026.

About 42 children and teens are diagnosed with cancer every single day.

Every 3 minutes, somewhere in America, a parent hears the words: “Your child has cancer.”

Yet, only 4% of federal cancer research funding is directed toward pediatric cancer…even though it is the leading cause of death by disease in children and young adults under 20.

About 1,820 children and teens are expected to die from cancer in 2026…that’s approximately 5 kids every day!

In a study over a 30-year time period, more than 200 new drugs were approved for adult cancers compared with ONLY SEVEN developed specifically for childhood cancers.

This month I’m asking you to help us spread awareness. Let’s make the gold ribbon as well-known as the pink ribbon. Together, we can honor the children we’ve lost, stand with the children still fighting, and fight for a future where no child has to battle cancer.

08/26/2026

MARK YOUR CALENDARS
BUCK FOR KIDS DAY IS 9/18/2026

I just ordered 21,000 STICKERS that will be given out at 13 Dutch Bros locations for Buck for Kids Day on September 18th!

This year we will I’ll have SIX different collectible stickers, each one of our local wish kids! A big thank you to Theresa at RJ Young for all of your help with these stickers.

If you can’t make it to one of the 13 participating Dutch Bros locations on 9/18 don’t worry! We’ll also have the stickers available to purchase. 100% of the proceeds will go toward making wishes come true for local Tennessee kiddos battling cancer.

So save the date to grab some Dutch Bros, collect your stickers, and help us MAKE WISHES COME TRUE!

08/02/2026

Today we partnered with Plaza Mariachi Music City for sweet Jade’s Rainbow-Bubble-Slime-Lightening McQueen-Bluey- Dance Party! That’s all of her favorite things!!!

Everyone had a great time playing in the bubbles, dancing, making slime and having their faces painted. One of the guest told me “This is the first time I’ve seen Jade running around looking so happy in a long time”. Hearing those words is exactly why we do what we do. Creating moments of joy for children who are fighting battles no child should ever have to face is what Dreams and Wishes of Tennessee is all about.

Jade recently received her latest scan results. While we are thankful that one of her tumors has shrunk, doctors found additional tumors in her cerebellum. Please keep Jade and her family in your prayers as they determine the best course of treatment for her.

Thank you Laura Collins for the amazing job on the super treat bags. Thank you Premiere Transportation, Ken and Uncle Bob, for bringing Jade and her family/friends to the party in style, thank you to everyone at Plaza that made this so special and thank you to Michael with DJ Expression. With the help of everyone, her wish day was a success!! Thank you!

Videos are in comments below.

07/30/2026

Thirteen years ago today we granted our very first wish to Ben Perry.

What started with one little wish has grown into something I could have NEVER imagined.. This Sunday we will grant wish number 204!!

Every child, every family, every volunteer, every donor, ano every supporter has been part of this incredible journey. Thank you for believing in our mission and helping us create lasting memories for Tennessee children battling cancer.

Here's to 13 years of making wishes come true... and to many more still to come.

07/04/2026

Meet 21-year-old Ryan from Soddy
Daisy, TN. “When I was in my senior year of high-school. I was diagnosed with ALL and forced to skip the last half of my senior year in order to get treatments. I was in and out of the hospital for a few months before I came down with a severe case of pneumonia and was put on a breathing tube. During this time I also went septic and had to have my heart shocked back into rhythm. I was placed into a medically induced coma for over a month and had to relearn how to walk.

After a year had passed and I became well enough to go to college at UT Knoxville while still undergoing maintenance treatment. After 2 years I was nearing the end of my treatment for cancer. I had 1 month of treatment left when I received a call saying that I another form of cancer called MDS.

After receiving that diagnosis I had to drop out of school once again and move to Nashville in order to get a bone marrow transplant. After some testing I found that my older brother was a perfect match for me to receive his bone marrow. After another intense round of chemotherapy, I got the transplant and had to begin the recovery process that came with it, which included immunotherapy and many other medications to help my immune system accept the new bone marrow. I also had to stay away from the public for around 6 months after that.

Now, I go to Nashville each month to make sure that my new bone marrow is still working the way it should."

Ryan is an avid golfer. His wish is for 3 different Callaway Golf clubs. We hope you continue to get good results from your transplant Ryan and hope you can join us at our golf tournament in October.

07/02/2026

⛳️ We’re looking for golfers, sponsors, and silent auction donations! ⛳️

Join us for a super fun day on the beautiful Hermitage Golf Course while helping make wishes come true for local kiddos battling relapsed cancer.

Every dollar raised helps us grant wishes that provide unforgettable memories during some of life’s most difficult times for these kids.

If you would like to participate or have questions, please send a message to [email protected]

06/05/2026

At just 3 years old, Will underwent an 8-hour brain surgery to remove a stage 4 malignant medulloblastoma tumor the size of a baseball. A small portion of the tumor on his brain stem could not be removed because doing so would have risked severe life-threatening injuries. Doctors also discovered two tumor nodules on his spine that surgery could not address.

Will has had 30 radiation treatments and seven months of chemotherapy. The side effects were devastating to his body. He lost the ability to speak and walk and even lost his potty training skills.

Through countless prayers, incredible determination, and the help of the team at St. Jude and his therapists, Will fought his way back. He relearned how to talk, walk, and use the bathroom independently. In November 2016, he was declared in remission.

Fast forward to 2026, and Will’s battle is far from over. He has relapsed 4 times, undergone 13 surgeries, and spent the last 10 years fighting for his life. He recently received new scan results, and the video is shared in the comments below.

As a result of his treatments, Will lives with permanent hair loss from radiation, permanent hearing loss from chemotherapy, stunted growth, scoliosis, kyphosis, and nerve damage in both feet. Yet despite all he has endured, Will continues to face each day with a smile.

He loves playing with trains, Toy Story toys, Batman, and PJ Masks. He enjoys being outside and especially loves spending time in his sandbox. Although Will will celebrate his 14th birthday on June 26, developmentally he is closer to a 6-year-old child.

For his birthday this year, Will has ask his family to take him to Panama City Beach. He loves the beach and loves playing in the sand!

We are incredibly grateful that donations to help make Will’s wish extra special were provided by members of the United States Coast Guard deployed in support of Operation Riverwall. Their generosity will help create precious memories for Will and his family and give him something every child deserves, a chance to simply be a kid.





Prayers for William God's Warrior!
Hayley Ryan Wilder