JACKSON– An 11-year-old township boy received his dream courtesy of The Dream Factory, an organization whose “product” is granting wishes to young people.
Dream Factory of the Jersey Shore (DFJS) Director Luanne Wood told The Jackson Times, “We are an all-volunteer charity that grants dreams to local critically and chronically ill children. “Our past dreams have included celebrity meetings with Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, LeBron James, and the Jonas Brothers, as well as cruises, shopping trips, and the most popular dream, a visit to Disney.”
Jake Kulesa has had Cerebral Palsy (CP) since birth and has had many medical challenges, enduring several surgeries. At birth, his parents were informed that he would never walk, sit up independently, or potentially ever speak.
At three years old, he took his first steps with determination and hard work with therapists. Since then, Jake has had two major surgeries, one at age five on his spine and the most recently on both hips, knees, and femur. These surgeries help correct the toll CP takes on his body.
Wood said, “Jake will be facing one more surgery in November. He is the strongest 11-year-old you will ever meet and still loves making other people laugh.”
“Jake’s dream was to go to a Country Music Concert and DFJS provided him, his parents, and two brothers four-day passes to the Barefoot Country Music Fest in Wildwood.
She added, “I’ve been involved since our founding in 2010, and we are proud to have made over 50 dreams come true.”
His mother Shannon Kulesa is the president of the Jake’s Got This Foundation, a 501c charity organization. The organization was created by family and friends of Jake. “This weekend was incredible! Jake had the time of his life. All he kept saying was “this is amazing” “this is so cool” in between singing his heart out to all his favorite songs.”
“The “big” night for him was seeing Luke Bryan. That was the original wish he asked the Dream Factory for. I don’t think there was a song he didn’t sing as loud as could and he was up dancing as much as he could. This was definitely something he will always remember.”
Among the many performers at the concert were Bailey Zimmerman, Jake Owen, Scotty McCreery, Oliver Anthony, and The Beach Boys. DFJS covered the family’s lodging, spending money and travel expenses.
DFJS volunteers revealed his dream to him on June 12 at the Allaire Care Center in Wall Township. The party featured a country theme, and the DFJS served up his favorite foods. Atillio’s of Wall donated pizza and pasta for the event.
DFJS started in 1980 with one all-volunteer chapter in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Since then, the organization has grown into the largest all-volunteer children’s wish-granting organization in the United States.
The organization has maintained its grassroots approach and continues to operate all 32 of its local chapters with very dedicated volunteers. These hard-working individuals raise funds within their own communities and then use those funds to grant the dreams of local children.
“Because we do not employ people on a local level, 90-percent of all money raised by The Dream Factory is used to grant the dreams of critically and chronically ill children,” Wood said.
She added, “this record of success has been recognized by Charity Navigator when they ranked the Dream Factory as a four-star charity, their highest rating. Charity Navigator is the largest and most utilized evaluator of charities.”
