Make-A-Wish Selects Taylor Marini as its Regional Manager

June 23, 2021 – Sarasota

Make-A-Wish® Southern Florida has named Taylor Marini to lead its regional office in Sarasota. The Lakewood Ranch resident will focus on granting life-changing wishes for critically-ill children on the Suncoast, fundraising, brand advancement, volunteer training, and collaborating with the area’s advisory board and committees.  

Marini rejoins Make-A-Wish after previously serving in a variety of roles during a seven-year period in the nonprofit’s southwest Florida office. Most recently, she was assistant director of advancement and special events at the Community School of Naples.   

“I’ve returned to Make-A-Wish with more skills and as a more polished pro, so I’m anxious to engage the community and have significant impact for a mission that’s been close to my heart since college,” said Marini, a Florida Gulf Coast University graduate.   

One of Marini’s first tasks will be to develop a strategic plan for the region that includes corporate and individual donors, volunteers, students, and the diverse communities in and around Sarasota. “We’re obviously familiar with what Taylor brings to our organization and anxious to tap into her fundraising and relationship-building expertise,” said Norman Wedderburn, president & CEO of Make-A-Wish Southern Florida. “We’re confident she’s the right person at the right time for the children and families we serve.” 

A licensed foster parent, Marini has been an active Make-A-Wish volunteer for nearly 15 years.    

Make-A-Wish Southern Florida (www.wish.org/sfla) has granted nearly 13,000 life-changing wishes since 1983 for children who have critical illnesses. It aims to grant a wish for every medically-eligible child in its territory, with research showing that wishes aren’t just nice, they’re necessary to the health and well-being of the child and his or her extended family at some of the most difficult times of their lives. 

Wish kids most often ‘wish to be’ (something), ‘wish to meet’ (someone), ‘wish to go’ (somewhere), ‘wish to have’ (something), or ‘wish to give’ (to a cause) and the nonprofit organization makes this happen for the child and his/her entire family at no cost or obligation. The average cost to grant a wish on the Suncoast is $8,000.  The Southern Florida chapter’s territory includes four regions (Suncoast, Tampa Bay, southeast and southwest Florida) and the U.S. Virgin Islands.   

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