Nephew's experience inspired her to work with foundation
Her journey as a wish granter started about three years ago.
Madam Suzanne Liu, 52, tells The New Paper on Sunday: "I am now a housewife and I thought I have a bit of free time, so I would like to give back and do some social work."
The mother of two has since granted about 20 wishes.
She granted nine wishes last year, making her one of the top wish granters then.
She has worked with children with various illnesses and their wishes range from room makeovers and staycations to thematic birthday parties and even overseas travel.
She says: "It is quite a different experience with each and every child."
Madam Liu got to know of the Make-A-Wish Foundation Singapore through her nephew, Bryan Liu, who was a Wish Child in 2010.
Bryan, then four, had no functioning kidney. He survived by being on dialysis for 10 hours daily.
He had then asked for an iPad to keep himself occupied.
TNP reported about his struggles of being born with one kidney, which had failed by the time he was two.
The kidney his mother gave him also failed and had to be removed due to a rare condition caused by a virus.
In 2012, two years after Bryan's story was featured, Mr Lin Dilun, who read about him in TNP, gave one of his kidneys to Bryan altruistically.
It made Mr Lin, who was then 27, the youngest living altruistic kidney donor here.
Since then, Bryan has been living a normal life.
CHEF'S DREAM
Madam Liu recalls a 14-year-old boy who dreamed of being a chef.
He was the victim of a traffic accident outside his school, and suffered injuries to his brain and eyes.
Madam Liu says: "When we met up with him, he was in the hospice. He has been there for a while. He said he wanted to cook beef rendang."
Together with fellow wish granters, Madam Liu managed to get a hotel to sponsor and organise the event.
A chef taught the boy how to cook two dishes, and the boy cooked for his family and friends at a party.
The boy was also chauffeured to the hotel in a limousine for an added "wow" factor.
Madam Liu says: "He likes Star Wars, so we brought in a life-size Stormtrooper balloon.
"For this wish, I wasn't working alone. There were three wish granters. In the background, we had sponsors who stepped in and prepared the recipe and ingredients, and taught him how to cook.
"Many people chipped in one way or another, and it made the journey very meaningful."
She adds: "It was one wish, one journey, but we had a lot of hands in it."
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