Make-A-Wish and Na ‘Aina Kai Botanical Gardens answer a child’s wish

On Dec. 4, Na ‘Aina Kai Botanical Gardens and Make-A-Wish Foundation collaborated to help bring a young girl’s wish to life. Ten-year-old Madeleine Rink-McGinn suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy II, which is a disease that confines her to a powered wheelchair.

Rink-McGinn’s wish was to visit Na ‘Aina Kai Botanical Gardens and photograph its plants. The Make-A-Wish BC & Yukon Chapter contacted Georgine Flores, the Visitors Program Director of Make-A-Wish Hawai‘i to help arrange for the family’s travel from their hometown of Vancouver to Kaua‘i. Rink-McGinn made the trek to Kaua‘i with her parents Barry McGinn and Deborah Rink-McGinn and her friend Jade Storoschuk.

The tour of the gardens started in the Formal Gardens where both Rink-McGinn and friend Storoschuk quickly started snapping pictures. Rink-McGinn is quite the photographer; she demonstrated her unusual eye for texture and constantly placed herself as close as possible for a magnified view of the many trees and flowers in the Garden.

The parents of Rink-McGinn were amazed at the wide variety of flora and fauna found at Na ‘Aina Kai. Mother Deborah was able to point out many plants by name illustrating her botanical knowledge.

The family explored every part of the Formal Garden, and took many pictures and afterwards went to the Children’s Garden to explore, but were drawn back to the Formal Garden to collect leaves, branches, and seed pods.

The entire tour was not only enjoyable to Rink-McGinn but to her family, friends, and the staff at Na ‘Aina Kai. The Rink-McGinns and Storoschuk left the Garden with gift bags including matching pink hats with the gardens logo and some other surprises.

Jennifer Downs from the Na ‘Aina Kai Botanical Gardens said in a press release, “Make-A-Wish Foundation and Na ‘Aina Kai Botanical Gardens made Madeleine Rink-McGinn’s wish come true, and I am sure it was an experience that all involved in will never forget.”