2023 Year In Review!
2023 marked The Dream Factory's 40th anniversary - 40 years of supporting children with life-threatening illnesses and their families, 40 years of bringing dreams to life. This year was full of incredible moments - seeing creative and magical dreams come to life, watching Dream Kids get to re-experience the magic of dreaming long after their dreams come true, and feeling the immense support from our incredible community.
Pictured: Dream Kids got together with superheroes and princesses for ice cream for breakfast!
This year we met with 65 families, which is the most dream discovery meetings we've had on record in one year! 2023 saw a record-breaking 45 Dreams come true, and it wouldn't have been possible without the amazing folks in our dream community.
We started off the year by celebrating a handful of upcoming dream trips to Disney World at Dreamland Diner! What better way to let loose with a bunch of Dream Kids than to have ice cream for breakfast! Dreamland Diner has become an incredible host for our pre-dream parties, especially because of their 'kids only dance area'. With the help of princesses and superheroes from Heather's Pretty Parties, these parties are the perfect ramp-up to a dream come true.
Out of the 45 dreams that came true this year, 16 of those were to experience the magic of Disney World. Disney continues to be our most requested dream - and for good reason!
Dream Kids like Maiya get to stay at Give Kids The World village, where they get to experience the magic beyond Disney. Maiya made so many treasured memories with her family on their dream trip to Disney.
Pictured: Dream Kid Maiya and her family had a blast in Disney World!
Pictured: Maiya got all dolled up for her princess makeover.
"Seeing her eyes light up at all the attractions, the rides, the characters, literally everything, was all we could want for as her parents," Maiya's dad, Jeremy, shared. "Overall, the trip was a fantastic way for us to bond as a family and get away from the trials we face on a daily basis as a result of Maiya's diagnosis and subsequent treatment. It was something all four of us will treasure for our lifetimes."
Dream Kids took part in so many fun activities throughout the year. Leading up to the Dream Maker Auction, Dream Kids joined us at Artists Emporium to create works of art that would be sold at the auction in the Kinsmen Dream Gallery! We got to see how truly artistic and gifted our Dream Kids are. Some of the artists actually came out to the Dream Maker Auction to help sell their masterpieces.
At the 2023 Dream Maker Auction, Dream Kid James and his parents shared their experience from their dream trip to Disney World. James was the star of the night - he made a grand entrance to the auction, accompanied by superheroes and fireworks! Even at the afterparty, James was burning it up on the dancefloor - a party machine if we ever saw one.
Pictured: Dream Kid Brodie got to meet his heroes on the Bombers!
Pictured: Dream Kids Chad and Dante toured the Police HQ as VIP Police Co-Chiefs for the day.
Over the summer, Dream Kids took part in several events and activities around the community, like when they spent the day at the Investors Group Field to meet and practice with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers! Over 130 Dream Kids, siblings, and parents spent the day visiting with the Bombers, throwing around the football, and trying out some of the Bombers' practice equipment.
One of the most exciting days this year was when Dream Kids Dante and Chad visited the Winnipeg Police HQ to be awarded 'Police Chiefs for the Day’! Dante and Chad got a tour of the HQ and checked out some of the cool tactical unit equipment, like the SPOT the robot dog! Dante bossed around the police and had a few Dream Factory staff members thrown in a (pretend) jail cell. Chad also had a blast meeting the (real) police dog, Ellie, who absolutely loved Chad.
Dream Kids also met all sorts of animals and creatures at the Wildest Dreams event at the Assiniboine Park and Zoo, enjoyed the singing and dancing of the Little Mermaid at Rainbow Stage, and sat in VIP seats at many a Winnipeg Jets game. The Winnipeg Jets are a huge part of many experiences we are able to create at The Dream Factory - often thanks to Josh Morrissey, our Winnipeg Jets Dream Ambassador. One special dream experience that stands out is when Josh Morrissey met up with Dream Kid Logan at an NHL game in Tampa Bay! The connections made through dreams truly crossed the continent.
Several Dream Kids joined us at The Dream Factory 0ffice to decorate ties that were sold at the Josh Morrissey Classic. Wacky ties, fun ties, and nice designer-style ties were a hit as golfers from our special community enjoyed a perfect day on the golf course. Dream Kid James was at one of the tee-offs encouraging golfers to purchase a tie - he was quite the salesman, they sold out before the day was through!
The Josh Morrissey Golf Tournament was a blast - Dream Kids were on the green to meet with Josh and a few other Jets players: Adam Lowry, Neal Pionk, Gabriel Vilardi, and Dominic Toninato. With their bellies full of delicious breakfast served at the clubhouse (plus sugar and candy, of course), Dream Kids and their families hung out with the Jets through the morning until it was time to tee off. After the day of golfing, our community came together to hear from Dream Kid Aly's mom about Aly's magical dream come true at Disney World! We are so grateful to the generous folks who believed in the power of dreams both at the Dream Maker Auction and the Josh Morrissey Classic.
We are also incredibly thankful for all the folks in the community who have achieved humongous fundraising feats in support of Dream Kids this year. In January, we were invited to a brand new event: Submission Series! This Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu event was an incredible new way to support Dream Kids - and 2023 saw this event not once but TWICE! Submission Series 2 took place in August and was even bigger and better than the first! Dream Kid Dante came out to the event and had a blast taking pictures with the championship belt.
The fourth annual Dream Ride was a blast in the summer - supporting TWO inspiring Dream Kids: Cain and Kendall. Both Dream Kids joined in on the fun and our incredible community broke fundraising records yet again.
Pictured: This year was a fundraising record-breaker at Dream Ride!
Pictured: Dream Kid Cain even joined the riders on his bicycle!
Deadlifts for Dreams 5 was another hit this year! With personal records being beat in both lifting and fundraising, what else could Deadlifts bring to the table? A dunk tank of course! Deadlifts organizers Dave and Devin, along with several Dream Factory staff, were sent for a swim in the dunk tank by the Dream Kids that came out to the day of fun! On top of that, Dream Kid Spencer and his sister got to sit on the tailgate of the truck while participants performed truck deadlifts. It was absolutely a fun-filled day!
Pictured: Dream Kid Spencer had a blast at Deadlifts for Dreams 5 - he even tried out a deadlift!
Our community really got physically active with all the great events that went on throughout the year. Folks came out in the cold of February to walk and skate the Forks river trail for The Great Skate. We were so impressed at all the folks that joined us at the Endeavour Rising Tide stair climb as well! Participants climbed the equivalent of the Whistler Blackcomb Mountain Trail - that's 3,900 feet of elevation! This year at Super Strength for Super Kids, we saw the youngest participant ever join in on the strongman competition. Seeing everyone come out to all of these athletic events inspired us beyond words!
Pictured: The crowd (Dream Families included) had a blast cheering the good guys and booing the baddies at Wrestling for a Cause.
We also managed to get our fill of treats at the Big Bake Sale, which supported Emily's dream to visit Australia! Several groups also put on golf tournaments to help bring dreams to life, including the Hooks & Slices golf tournament and the TEMS Paramedic golf tournament. One event that stuck out to us was Wrestling for a Cause. This pro-wrestling event that had everyone invested: cheering, booing, and cheering some more. Our friend Corey, who wrestled in the event, also organized a day where dream kids could come and meet Santa before the holidays! We're excited for January 27, the day of the next Wrestling for a Cause event, which will surely be a night of even more action, cheering, and excitement.
There were so many dreams that filled our hearts with joy this past year, but one special dream keeps coming to mind: when Dream Kid Fallon met her idol, Dolly Parton! Fallon learned about Dolly's songwriting process, what's happening at Dollywood, and was even serenaded by Dolly! It was an incredible morning that left Fallon (and the rest of us) speechless.
Pictured: Dream Kid Fallon met her hero, Dolly Parton via Zoom for an exciting chat!
Pictured: As part of her Dream, Fallon was decked out in Dolly Parton gear for her call.
With The Dream Factory turning 40 in 2023, we decided to celebrate the best way we knew how - we invited Dream Kids, their families, and members from our Dream Community to join us for an ice-cream for breakfast birthday party! Stunning balloon arrangements (including a giant balloon ice cream cone) and a light-up dance floor set the day up for maximum fun.
Guests entered the party zone and were welcomed by a giant 40th birthday photo op and delicious treats: ice cream, cupcakes, and cookies. Once guests hit their sugar rush, it was time to hit the dancefloor with The Wackydoodle Dance Party for Kids! Princesses and superheroes joined the kids on the dancefloor for an amazing time. Every kid who joined us to celebrate our 40th birthday didn't leave without taking home a birthday present (not to mention extra cake, cookies, and snacks). It was a fabulous day and we were so blessed to have been able to party with our Dream Community!
We are so grateful for all the folks that helped make 2023 so special for Dream Kids. Heather's Pretty Parties joined us at countless events this year with superheroes, princesses, video game characters, and of course, facepainting! The incredible folks at Emergent Biosolutions also came together to bring Emily's dream to life - Dream Kid Emily just set off on her trip to Australia!
2023 was also a year of kids helping kids. The summer saw several kid-led initiatives to raise money for Dream Kids. Mia, a friend of a Dream Kid, asked for donations to The Dream Factory instead of birthday gifts. Another kid in our community, Avery, held a lemonade stand in front of her house to help make dreams come true.
Pictured: Dream Kid Nabila meets Mickey and Minnie at Disney World!