You deserve good things
When 12-year-old Abraham Olagbegi faced a potentially fatal illness, the Make-a-wish Foundation offered to make his greatest wish come true. His request was both surprising and touching: “I want to feed homeless people!”
Abraham Olagbegi and his mother, Miriam, knew the situation was dire as he lay in his hospital bed that day in 2020. The Jackson, Mississippi, then-12-year-old had a rare blood disorder called PNH (Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria) that was destroying his bone marrow. Abraham needed a bone marrow transplant, and he wouldn’t be coming home anytime soon—maybe not at all.
With sadness, Abraham turned to his mother with a surprising and moving question. “Does this mean I won’t get to feed the homeless anymore?”
“Well, not for a while,” a heartbroken Miriam replied, fighting back tears.
The Olagbegi family had a monthly tradition of going to a local park, where many members of the large homeless community would spend time, and giving them food. The family would buy and prepare meals, ranging from baked chicken to spaghetti to brownbag lunches, and pass them out while singing hymns and offering words of encouragement.
Now, Miriam and Abraham needed encouragement.
Then, Miriam was connected with the Make- A-wish Foundation, which grants wishes to terminally ill children.
“Abraham, if you could have one wish, what would it be?” Miriam asked her son.
“It would be to feed the homeless,” Abraham replied without hesitation.
“We do that anyway, Abraham,” Miriam replied. “You don’t want a Playstation or something?”
“I could feed the homeless every day,” Abraham said. “That would be my wish.”
Wow, my son really is something special, Miriam thought.
Her husband, Adejuwon, beamed with pride. “Let him do it!” he said.
It was hardly the typical request for Make-a-wish, which provides a lot of amazing experiences, like trips to Disney World. At first, Miriam didn’t know if the organization could even work with this request, but to her delight it was approved.
“I’m grateful to be alive and want
to give back,” says Abraham Abraham was thrilled. It was just the boost he needed.
For a year, Make-a-wish sponsored the family’s food for the homeless feedings. Meanwhile, Abraham, the second-youngest of 10 kids, continued to fight and, today, after a bone marrow transplant, the now-14-year-old is healthy and back in charge of the project again— a real-life inspiring example to never lose hope. The family has also started a Gofundme and they hope to start a nonprofit to keep Abraham’s dream going.
“The Bible tells us that homeless people have a special place in God’s heart,” Abraham says. And they have a special place in Abraham’s heart too.
“I am very grateful that my life was saved and I want to give back,” he says. “It’s a blessing to be a blessing.”