After spending 19 years with the Children’s Wish Foundation Gerry Beresford is hanging up his fundraising boots.
Beresford has spent the last decade as Chapter Director in New Brunswick. He says the rule of thumb while working with the organization was to not get attached, but says it was difficult not to especially when you witness the turmoil families go through.
He says he originally started out in the military at a very young age and retired from the military to take the job at the Children’s Wish Foundation. Beresford now plans on moving back into military part-time with the Canadian Rangers.
Beresford says when he started with the Children’s Wish Foundation roughly 10 wishes were granted a year and now the average is up to as many as 50.
He says when families would come back from being away in places like Disney World it was powerful and moving to hear how happy they were to “just be a family again”.
Beresford says groups like Bayside Middle School, who have raised approximately $300,000 dollars over the past 15 years, have made the amount of wishes that have been granted over the years possible.
