Suspended fundraiser puts mom in tough spot
Wishes for Olivia event cancelled over COVID-19, leaving organizer on hook
A mother whose little girl died suddenly at age five is afraid her legacy will be lost if she doesn’t get a $15,000 deposit returned for a Toronto event that’s been cancelled due to COVID-19.
A parent’s worst nightmare came true for Jennifer White when she went into her daughter’s room at their Pickering home on Boxing Day morning in 2012, and the little girl never woke up. A coroner’s report stated Olivia Grace White died of an undiagnosed blood disorder, septicemia.
Olivia’s mother started Wishes For Olivia in 2013 to honour her daughter, who loved princesses and treated everyone with kindness. Each year, the Princess Ball, the not-for-profit organization’s biggest fundraiser, is held at the Liberty Grand at Exhibition Place in Toronto in Olivia’s honour. The event is a fun-filled event for parents and their children, with princesses on hand, a candy bar and activities, such as face painting and crafts. “We raise approximately $65,000 to $70,000 per event,” said White.
To date, Wishes for Olivia has raised $420,000 through the Princess Ball and other initiatives. The money goes to Make A Wish Foundation, which has granted the wishes of 42 sick children as a result.
“We started this in order to give Olivia a legacy and to help children with illness and disabilities,” White said. “And we’ve done so much good in her name. And it’s going to end. It’s going to be over unless we get the deposit back.”
The ball was originally scheduled to take place in April, but due to COVID-19, it was pushed to October.
“They’ve said that it’s highly unlikely they’ll be able to hold the event,” said White.
Besides, even if it can go on as restrictions are lifted, White has decided she cannot host the event due to the number of vulnerable children who attend the Princess Ball, many of whom are cancer patients or suffer from other illnesses.
“Obviously the safety of our guests is of the utmost concern and we don’t know when this is going to get better,” White said.
Nick Di Donato, president and chief executive officer of Liberty Entertainment Group, said COVID-19 has been a struggle for the company that has been shut down since March. Returning deposits, which are non-refundable as per contract stipulations, would not be sustainable, he said.
“If you give refunds to everyone who wants a refund, where would we be?” he said. “We still have to pay rent. We still have to pay taxes ... We’re down $5 or $6 million by now.”
He said the Liberty Grand has supported Wishes for Olivia since its inception, and believes it helped get the charity off the ground with its generosity.
“This one here in particular, it’s adding salt to the wound,” he said. “This event we have done over the years at cost. It’s a really nice event.”
Di Donato said the Princess Ball may still be able to go on. He said he is willing to work with White on alternative party plans, such as an outdoor garden party on the large patio. If that won’t work, he has offered to put the deposit toward a 2021 event with no penalty.
“We’re saying, ‘Hold on, let’s figure this out,’ ” he said.
But White feels she has been brushed off, and said she has to return the money that guests have paid for their tickets. Tickets cost around $300 for a pair of adult and child tickets and although the charity does give away some tickets, 500 people normally attend the annual event.
“I can’t afford $15,000,” she said. “It’s the end of us. It’s the absolute end of us. It feels like they’re holding the legacy of my daughter in their hands.”
Di Donato suggests the charity’s supporters either keep their tickets for next year’s event, considering the unique circumstances surrounding COVID-19, or donate the money.