Presenting

orn and raised in New Orleans, Rebecca moved to Sarasota when her father retired in 1995. She has spent her entire adult life in the pursuit of helping children. Work ing tirelessly for numerous local non-pofit organizations, she found her ultimate reward as the Regional Director of the Make-A-Wish-Foundation. rough her work she has gained the perspective and strength to create a beautiful life for her and her two adorable children. No stranger to tragedy herself, she shares her courageous journey with us. Tell us about your passion for the non-profit sector. When I moved here in 1995, I didn't k now what I wanted to do, so I started work ing at the Jewish Community Center. at's where I learned ever y thing about fundraising and about what I wanted to do with my life. My passion had always been children and speak ing up for those who can't speak up for themselves. I eventually became a school teacher with the Sarasota School Board and loved it. But the Jewish Community Center said, "We' ll double your teaching salar y, if you come back." So I went back. I started worked with the children's summer camp and their developmental office to running the Children Family programs. en, I had my own children, and was fortunate to stay home with them for a few years. During that time, I did do a lot of volunteering with Catholic Diocese, St. Martha's, Selby Gardens, Jewish Children's Museum and the Humane Society. I was also ver y active with Junior League, I sat on their board for many years and that's where I learned a lot about the communities and giving back. I was already active with Make-A-Wish volunteering my time and then they said, hey, let's elevate that, and the CEO and I spoke, then I came into this position. I've been here ever since. Rebecca Blitz Regional Director, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Central and Northern Chapter B Favorite Book Sense and Sensibility. Favorite Movie I enjoy happy, fun ones like You've got Mail. Favorite Pandora Station Adele. I love her. Unwind to Adele and Enya. Fun stuff, I have kids so Taylor Swi. I love like Cher and Elton John. How many families do you serve? e chapter, which includes 5 counties from Manatee to Port Charloe, has 308 wishes annually. We tr y to do a wish a day. Unfortunately, we do say no to wishes, people think that we don't, but we are really selective about who we grant wishes to. We don't make that decision, the doctor does. We will grant an entire wish for the entire family, so if they have 14 siblings, 14 children are going. How do you balance your passion for children and stay positive? e first real wish that I got to k now the family, she got her wish, and then we had to air li her off a Disney Cruise, so then we ended up sending her in December to Disney. She became a princess and ever y thing was great, and she passed Januar y 5th. I lost it. ere are times to this day that I sit in my car and I can't get it together but I also k now what a huge difference we make and that's the most amazing thing. It's not like it's a sad thing , it is over-the-top fabulous. Whatever they want, we're going to make it happen. So, if I k new their dying wish or their life-threatening illness, if I can make their life beer for a week for them to look for ward while in chemo or whatever they're going through, that's how I truck through it because the family doesn't have to think about any thing while they are there. ey don't have to think about money, they don't have to think about hotels, medicine. It's all taken care of. How old are your children? I have an 8-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, and an 11-year-old son, Ryan, and they are so cool. When one of them complains 'Oh, I don't want to do something." I remind them how lucky they are. Like really? ey've met some of my wish children, so they see the reality. Who was your biggest influence in life? I would say my parents and my grandparents. My dad is an orthopedic surgeon, he gives back a lot in the community and my family and my uncle is also a huge philanthropist. He says, "I earn the money, but it's beer for me to give the Personal Favorites my BEST life 22 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com

• Cover