This Florida resort gives critically ill children the chance to just be kids

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Eight-year-old Zachary Doyle was in hospice when his family got a chance for one more adventure.

“We adopted Zachary when he was 7 weeks old, and he had spina bifida and hydrocephalus, which at the time seemed like manageable diagnoses that we could tackle as a family,” his mom, Susan Doyle, told USA TODAY in November. “Unfortunately, in the last seven years, he developed many other conditions.”

She said he underwent around 40 brain and heart surgeries like ”a champ,” but ran out of treatment options last year.

“We were pretty resigned to being at home and finishing out the end at home,” Doyle said. That was until Zachary was granted a rush wish trip to Walt Disney World through Gentle Shepherd Hospice in Lynchburg, Virginia.

“Zachary loves all things ‘Toy Story,’ and so his wish was to meet Woody,” she said with a smile.

Roughly half of all critically ill children eligible for a wish choose to visit Central Florida attractions, according to Give Kids the World Village, the Kissimmee-based nonprofit that takes the baton from more than 250 wish-granting organizations worldwide and fulfills those wishes, in partnership with theme parks.

“This was going to be so much more than just meeting Woody,” Doyle said.

What is Give Kids the World Village?

Give Kids the World Village is an 89-acre, fully accessible, nonprofit resort exclusively for critically ill children and their families. It was founded in 1986 by late Holocaust survivor, hotelier and philanthropist Henri Landwirth, who wanted to ensure all kids got to enjoy childhood after missing out on much of his own.

In the early days, before the village was built, Tami O’Brien would help Landwirth find local hotel rooms for visiting wish families.

“He said, ‘We can never say no,’” recalled O’Brien, who now coordinates the village’s guest services and Welcome Back Family alumni program.

“So many of the kids that come here are so used to doctors or other people telling them no,” said Todd Thomas, whose 8-year-old daughter Annaliese battled Langerhans Cell Hystiocytosis as a toddler and is a Give Kids the World Village alum. Her pandemic-delayed wish was granted by Make-A-Wish Southern Florida in December 2022.

“This is a yes place for kids,” Thomas said. “If they want ice cream for breakfast or lunch or dinner, the answer’s yes. They have little rides on site. Any time a kid walks by, if they want to ride it, they’ll find somebody to attend it.”

Each wish family gets a private villa to stay in, all meals and snacks provided, daily surprise treats, tickets to all area theme parks, and access to a host of resort activities ranging from character greetings to horseback riding, all at no cost. They also receive a world passport from the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions, granting them access to parks around the country for a year.

“Whether they're like Annaliese, who's doing great, or they're having a hard time with their diagnosis, they still find ways to make every kid ...” Thomas began.

“Feel special!” Annaliese chimed in. “They treat you like you’re VIP.”

“I like being an alumni because we still get to do a bunch of fun things. Like, I got my hair done. I got my nails done. I got glitter tattoos,” she added. Alumni families are welcomed back to visit or volunteer. Annaliese was excited about the possibility of volunteering on her next visit. “I want to do that.”

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Being a kid

Susan Doyle guessed Zachary had ridden the village’s accessible carousel at least 100 times. One of his favorite spots was Matthew’s Boundless Playground, which like other village landmarks, is named after a late wish child.

“I felt like a mom of a typically developing child because at one point he was rolling down so fast, no fear at all,” Doyle said.

“We have never found greater accessibility than this,” she said. “There is nowhere on the property here at the village that Zachary can't navigate independently. And we’ve never experienced that. We're used to helping Zachary jump curbs or lifting his wheelchair up and over things.”

Stewart Dobbins, a pediatrician who volunteers at Give Kids the World Village in his spare time, has seen many wish children flourish there.

“A lot of them are children suffering through things that most adults don't suffer through,” he said. “The joy that they get just coming and having an experience away from the doctors, away from the madness of the hospital and the disease and all of that, it's just a sense of normalcy for them. ... They can relax and be a kid.”

Not alone

Wish children and their families can also see others like themselves.

“Nobody stares at them because their child has a trach or because they don’t have bodily control or they make unusual sounds or they don't have any hair because they've been going through treatments,” said Give Kids the World President and CEO Pamela Landwirth. “Even if you have children here who don't have outward manifestations of their illness, they're so used to seeing that in the hospitals.”

Nine-year-old Elliot Kostelak, whose wish was granted by Children's Wish Endowment of Louisiana, said, “I like being here because you get to talk to the kids that had surgery just like you, and it's fun to play around.”

Elliot was born with a cleft lip, cleft palate, congenital heart defect and chromosome disorder that is so rare, his mom, Jessica Kostelak, said it doesn't even have a name.

Whenever he met a fellow wish child, his mother said Elliot would ask, “What kind of surgery did you have to come here?” She said, “He felt a real connection to lots of the kids that we met during that week.”

Playing with his little sister Olivia, Elliot added, “You also get to hang out with your family.”

“That’s his best friend,” his mom said. “When she was born, he was 3 years old, and so she's only known Elliot's medical journey as her life, and so coming here was just as much about her, and she felt right at home.”

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A family affair

The trips are meant for the whole family, and Give Kids the World Village takes care to make sure siblings feel just as special as the wish children.

“We woke up every morning to small gifts for all three of our children and just the thoughtfulness behind everything, it's really hard to put a price on that,” said Zachary’s mom, Susan Doyle.

There’s a spa for wish parents and caregivers called Olivia’s Oasis, which Jessica Kostelak joked was so relaxing, her mom fell asleep. For Kostelak, the entire trip was a break.

“When we came here, we as a family just felt peace that I honestly didn't know was possible anymore,” she said. “Because we were just always thinking about that next thing that's coming up, and then we had such a magical week with them.”

Everything in the village is designed for families like the Kostelaks, Doyles and Thomases.

“I think they make it as easy of a process as possible for parents, while also making it unforgettable for the kids,” said Annaliese’s dad, Todd Thomas. “I don't know any other place in the world that has thought of just about everything to make a family going through an awful situation feel like a million bucks.”

Lasting memories

Zachary and his family loved their time at Give Kids the World Village, so much that they quickly scheduled alumni visits back after his wish trip.

“It's hard to put into words, but once you come here, it's like everything else kind of pales in comparison to the love and the beauty and the magic that is here,”  his mom said.

The village loved him right back, giving him the title of assistant mayor, inviting him to a board meeting and printing out business cards for him. He even had a direct report, whom he bossed around in good fun.

“Call me if you need anything!” he said during USA TODAY’s visit.

That would also be Zachary’s last trip to Give Kids the World Village. He passed away in December, but his memory lives on. A new wholesome food venue in the resort’s main dining hall is being named Zach’s Time Out in his honor.

And a star he decorated will forever adorn the ceiling of the village’s Castle of Miracles, along with stars of nearly 200,000 other wish children.

“It gives our family something to come back and remember, when he made that star and when he placed it and how we were all together as a family,” Susan Doyle said. “And even if he isn't with us on those future trips, it will just be special that we were here.”

Looking back, she said their wish trip opened the door to a whole new season with Zachary.

“I would encourage families of critically ill children, with as much as they are able, to continue making memories and continue doing special activities, even if it's not a big trip,” she said. “I’m thankful that we will have these positive memories, and I would want other families to enjoy that as well.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Give Kids the World gives critically ill kids trip like no other