A Mother’s Wish: Navigating grief through bringing joy to others

CHICAGO (WGN) — Sometimes, a mother’s wish is to navigate her way out of grief, and sprinkling a bit of magic along the way helps get the job done.

To understand Alecia Owen-Lato’s story, we have to go back several years ago, when this mom realized her time with her only son was slipping through her fingers. Ryan Lato was granted a wish—a moment that changed both of their lives moving forward.

“My son was a Make-A-Wish recipient,” Owen-Lato said. “We went to Disney for his wish. What they did for him was remarkable.”

Owen-Lato described the trip as nothing short of magical for Ryan. When he later died in May 2022, it was pictures of that trip and the moments Owen-Lato remembered from it that she kept coming back to.

“It was a few dark months after he passed,” Owen-Lato said. “I really lost my sense of what I was doing as a purpose.”

That darkness was present until the day she realized that perhaps, she could be the catalyst for the same joy her son experienced.

That same day, Owen-Lato signed up as a volunteer for Make-A-Wish Illinois, where she found healing with each wish she helped grant.

“You don’t know what it does to you until you start interacting with these families,” Owen-Lato said. “It brings me so much joy.”

According to Laurie Honza, Make-A-Wish Illinois’ Vice President of Marketing, Owen-Lato’s experience is not an unusual one.

“These volunteers truly get so much physical and emotional benefit from their volunteer experience,” Honza said.

In fact, there’s a growing body of research that suggests there’s a direct link between volunteering and improvements to our mental and physical health.

“People who volunteer and give back tend to be happier, manage their life with more ease, have better coping skills—all these things because they are getting that oxytocin and dopamine boost every time they do that,” said Nicolle Osequeda, a licensed family therapist. “It makes them feel like they are part of something. Something more than themselves.”

And so, with each new wish and each new story, Owen-Lato has discovered a new purpose, all the while creating tributes to the son she lost.

“It’s just the feeling I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing,” Owen-Lato said.

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For those interested in learning more about Make-A-Wish Illinois or even volunteering with the non-profit organization, you can visit their website by clicking here.