Quinceanera Gala Will Be Wish Come True

Birthday gala will be wish come true

Make-A-Wish of Kansas is helping Mayra celebrate her 15th birthday by giving her the quinceanera she missed nine months ago.

Instead of being excited for her 15th birthday party last February, Mayra was in a hospital bed after being diagnosed with aplastic anemia. In the Latino culture, a quinceanera is a coming-of-age birthday party for a 15-year-old. But just as her party was about to enter its final planning stages, Mayra's parents were forced to cancel the party and lose all deposits they had paid.

Nine months later, Mayra, whose last name was not released because of Make-A-Wish Foundation's policies, will be celebrating her quinceanera Nov. 21.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a nonprofit organization that grants wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions. A wish is granted and fully paid for by the Make-A-Wish Foundation and its sponsors.

United HealthCare joined forces with Make-A-Wish and has created a $4.5 million alliance — one of the largest in the nonprofit organization's 27-year history.

"Under that sponsorship they have chosen to grant a wish per state," said Pat Greenway, CEO of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Kansas.

The nation's 66 chapters are eligible to receive wish-granting funds through the new program. Each wish costs an average of $6,000 to grant.

When offered the opportunity for a wish, Mayra immediately wanted a quinceanera. Harrington Health, a local United HealthCare provider, is taking care of Mayra's wish. This is the first quinceanera that has been granted through Make-A- Wish in Kansas.

"I have three kids myself and to see a child that has come through a difficult time is a special moment," said Bob Langhofer, vice president for employee benefit sales at Harrington Health.

On Thursday afternoon, members of the Harrington Health staff and Make-A-Wish Foundation came together for the first time to celebrate Mayra's wish with a small reception.

Mayra, and her mother, Carolina, were in attendance, along with one of the three volunteer wish granters from Make-A-Wish.

"I will be attending her quinceanera," said Colleen Mills, a wish granter. "I have learned a lot since I started this. A quinceanera is about as involved as a wedding."

Carolina said she never believed her daughter would have a chance to celebrate this important cultural tradition because of her illness.

"We had been planning it for a year, but everything was canceled when she needed medical treatment," Carolina said. "The party had to be put on hold. We lost all deposits."

The dress, an important part of the celebration, had already been purchased before Mayra had to cancel her party.

"I bought the dress for her even though I didn't think she would ever get to have a quinceanera," Carolina said. "I wanted a picture of her in her dress, and now we get to have it."

Mayra's quinceanera will consist of a church ceremony, dance, guests, gifts and wisdom from her mother. Mayra will be accompanied by seven boys and seven girls as her court.

The court will perform dances for the crowd, including a waltz, which Mayra quickly scurried out of the reception on Thursday to practice for.

"I have choreography practice for my waltz that I can't miss," Mayra said.

Mills said she looks forward to seeing the work in this project pay off when Mayra celebrates on Nov. 21.

"This is wish 15 for me," she said. "We started this one in June and we are making it happen next weekend."

Mayra and Carolina were also presented with a gift certificate for manicures, pedicures and massages at Healing Waters Spa before the big day.

"I never thought there were people in this world as nice as the ones I have met here," Carolina said.

Langhofer said making this wish come true for Mayra has been meaningful to him.

"Day in and day out, we deal with the claim side of things," Langhofer said. "But behind every claim there is a person and with this particular one we are able to make a difference."

27 Teens To Receive A Free Quinceañera

Marlene Palomar, 15, walks shyly out of the dressing room in a yellow ball gown fit for a princess. She's greeted by an entourage of immediate and extended family, talking in unison in Spanish about how beautiful she looks.

The scene is just a preview of Palomar's much-anticipated quinceañera, where an even larger entourage of friends and family will celebrate on Sunday her transformation from girl to lady.

Her quinceañera, and that of 26 others, wouldn't be possible if it weren't for Norberto "Beto" Mojardin and his partner Cesar Delgado.

Mojardin owns Betos Beauty Salon in Aurora. Three years ago he decided to turn all those tears from mothers in his salon chair who didn't know how they could afford their daughters' quinceañeras into a dream come true.

By saving his tips, he threw - for free - his first quinceañera for 13 girls in the Denver area who had good grades and were willing to raise funds to earn money for their quinceañera.

In a grassroots effort, he rallied the Hispanic community and business owners for donations to put on the lavish event. The right of passage for young Hispanic girls can often be bigger and more expensive than a wedding and in this case, the price tag is around $50,000.

Because of the economy, more girls this year applied and donations were harder to come by, Mojardin said. Still, the quinceañera must go on.

The girls look forward to the party and all the preparation that goes into it - learning to waltz with their partner, getting their hair and makeup done by Mojardin and his staff and, of course, wearing a dress that could be plucked straight out of a Disney movie.

The mothers know this once-in-a-lifetime quinceañera is so much more than their 15-year-old daughters' minds can fully appreciate until later in life.

"It's the best dream she's going to have," said Evelia Medena, whose niece Mary Gonzalez is participating.

On Sunday, the girls will go to Mass at the Cathedral Immaculate Conception in Denver. They will then get ready, a process that will begin the day before, and take photos at Cheesman Park Pavilion in the afternoon.

The girls again will perform that night at their sold-out quinceañera, which will be attended by about 2,000 people at EXDO EventCenter at Tracks Night Club in Denver.

It's so much more than just an extravagant affair though, said Mojardin, who wants to take his quinceañera nationwide.

"It's very important because it unites (the Hispanic community)," he said, as evidenced by all the family members who huddled together at Cheeseman Park this weekend watching their daughters practice the choreographed dances.

Mothers get together and sell burritos at churches to raise money, daughters put on a car wash and younger brothers are never far from all the preparation, which began in June.

It's a learning experience, Mojardin said. Since he's providing a quinceañera the girls could only previously dream about, he's gotten their attention and he doesn't let the opportunity slip by.

"What these girls need to learn from their quinceañera is we need to stick together, we need to do well in school ... they need to be strong to make their dream come true," he said.