Million Reasons To Believe

Every year, Macy's hosts the "Million Reasons To Believe" campaign. For each stamped letter written to Santa, Macy's donates $1 (up to $1,000,000) to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. It based on the story of a girl named Virginia:

"In 1897, a girl named Virginia wrote a letter to the editor of the New York Sun asking if Santa truly existed. The editor, in response, published a letter that assured her that Santa exists as surely as beauty and joy exist. One must simply have the courage to shun cynicism and have faith in things that can't always be seen. And for those spirited ones, Santa will always exist."

I've participated in this campaign for many years and, though I started a new job this year and didn't get to visit schools as I normally do, I knew I wanted to collect letters again.

Thanks to the help of Our Lady Queen of Peace School, Zion Lutheran Pre School, and some very dear friends (Kelly Lam and Diane Pilatsky), I was able to collect over 1,000 "Dear Santa" letters! I was very happy to have been able to visit Our Lady Queen of Peace to thank them.

Right before my double-event day on December 21st, I delivered the letters to Macy's in the Staten Island Mall. While I was there, I met a little girl named Daisy. I invited her to help me put the letters in the mailbox and she happily agreed. It meant so much to me to see the joy on Daisy's face because it is exactly what the entire campaign is about - holiday joy and making children smile.

In total, Macy's donated $1 million to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. At an average cost of $7,500 for one wish, around 133 wishes can be granted across the country with this money.

Thank you, Macy's, for your annual support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and thank you to everyone involved for your letters! You really did help make a child's wish come true. Always believe because "nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world."