The Grand Valley Cardinal community has been trailblazing a path for other Western Slope schools to follow over the past two years. Since Feb. 2024, Grand Valley High School has successfully fronted two philanthropic community efforts known as Wish Week. 

GVHS was one of the first schools on the Western Slope to partner with Make-A-Wish and have just completed their second annual Wish Week. A week of fundraising to send a critically ill child on their wish. 

“Through the ‘Wish Week’ program we are able to partner with almost 200 schools in Colorado,” Hannah Beasly, a development manager for Make-A-Wish Colorado said. “The week looks like spirit week, but they’re raising money for Make-A-Wish Colorado, and are able to grant wishes for Colorado kids.”

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The Grand Valley community smashed their $6,500 fundraising goal through the last week of Jan. and will send an 11-year-old leukemia patient on his wish — to go ice fishing in Alaska. The unofficial total figure raised through the last week of Jan. is over $9,000. That money won’t just be contributed to one kid, Make-A-Wish Colorado says the average cost of a trip is $7,500 so the funds will go into a pool and be able to make multiple kids wishes come true. 

“It has been really transformative,” Beasly said. “Especially for smaller communities to rally around kids in their community and battling a critical illness.”

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“GVHS Leadership kicked off the year 2025 with a powerful message against cancer and the incredible support of our community,” Garfield-16 Public Information Intern Lucas Catto said. “A big thank you to GVHS Leadership and the students from Grand Valley for your dedication and involvement in helping grant a life-changing wish.”

Jeremy, 11, was diagnosed with high-risk B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Jeremy’s dream is to become a wildlife officer when he grows up. 

Sierra Trani, a sophomore at Grand Valley, was one of countless students who helped organize the second edition of Wish Week. 

“I believe that helping others is so important, especially to those going through the unimaginable,” Trani said. “I’ve been blessed with the leadership and organizational skills it takes to be in our Student Council/Leadership class and I love that I get the opportunity to use those skills to do something bigger than us.”

“The reason this program is so impactful is it’s not just a partnership with some organization and raising money. But they get to know the kid and learn their story and be able to celebrate them in a unique way,” Beasly said. “Although we focus on one kid, that school isn’t ‘sponsoring’ that kid, the money raised can fund multiple wishes.”

Penny jars and school assemblies were some of many fundraising spots members of the Grand Valley community could visit to make their contribution. The Make-A-Wish foundation promised to match every dollar put in the tip jar of a local coffee shop throughout the week. A hand drawn thermometer was put up to show different milestones in the fundraising efforts and work as a subconscious reward. Students were also rewarded multiple times during the campaign with the chance to pie a teacher in the face, or shave a different teacher’s head. 

The fundraising efforts culminated in an exciting Tuesday night at GVHS. People from Rifle to DeBeque showed their support during the silent auction, basketball rivalry combo night. 

The unofficial figure from the successful Tuesday night in late Jan. nearly surpassed the total fundraising goal according to Amy Largent, Grand Valley’s student leadership sponsor.

Items such as a signed Aaron Gordon picture (sold for $350) to a four night trip to Vegas were auctioned off at GVHS during the night that put the fun in fundraising. 

“It’s such an amazing feeling,” Trani said. “I won’t lie, at the beginning of the game I was very stressed that we weren’t going to have enough bidders. The silent auction was our biggest money maker, and if it ‘flopped’ I knew we wouldn’t make the goal. I was excited to see so many people bidding and I’m just so grateful for all of our students, teachers, community members, and local businesses that came together to make this possible.”

It is the second annual Wish Week organized by Grand Valley High School, and both have been smashing success. Last year, the inaugural Wish Week blew away expectations as the community rallied to make 4-year-old Sierra Salisbury’s wish come true, sending her to Disney World. Salisbury is set to make her trip to the happiest place on earth in March 2025. They followed in their own footsteps a year later, raising even more money for Jeremy to visit the northernmost state. 

Grand Valley was one of the first to introduce the idea of a Wish Week to the Western Slope, and the magnificent idea is already gaining traction.

Rifle and Coal Ridge will jump into the movement together, as they join to hold another Wish Week during the second week of February. If you wish to donate to either Garfield County fundraisers, visit the Make-A-Wish Colorado website. 

“I take pride in GVHS hosting a Wish Week,” Trani said. “Especially because we are a small school, it’s amazing to me that we were able to start from scratch and be so successful last year, and even more successful this year. I’m so excited that Rifle and Coal Ridge are following suit in bringing their community together and I hope other schools in the valley will follow suit as well.”