The Pattison Pals, with Daxton (third from left) at the 2025 Heroes Challenge. (Supplied)

By Josh Hall | @Vancan19

making dreams come true

Central Alberta Heroes Challenge raises about $45,000 for Make-A-Wish

Sep 26, 2025 | 3:08 PM

The second annual Central Alberta Heroes Challenge, in support of Make-A-Wish Northern Alberta, raised $45,000.

The event took place Wednesday at The Dome with a new high of 10 teams, raising the money to help the organization grant extraordinary wishes.

There is a consistent waitlist of around 40 kids in the Red Deer area, with each wish typically costing $10,000.

The Northern Alberta chapter has a waitlist closer to 300.

Jacey Schlosser was one of the proud parents at this year’s Heroes Challenge.

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Her son Daxton, who’s now in grade four, captained the Pattison [Media] Pals team at the event.

When Daxton was just four in 2019, he was diagnosed with leukemia. He went through two years of active treatment, then did a year in a survivor clinic, his mom shared.

Daxton now goes every six months for blood-work and a physical.

After the family was connected with Make-A-Wish, Daxton decided to go a little bit off the board, and wished for a gaming computer.

But that’s the beauty of a wish: Make-A-Wish goes above and beyond to make it happen.

“I wanted to stream,” Daxton shared with us. “I can play basically any game I want on it.”

“I find that when he’s not really feeling well or not feeling social, he can hop on the computer, he has his gaming friends, and he can connect with people that way,” added Schlosser.

“Make-A-Wish is an amazing charity. A lof of what he went through was extremely negative, and this has been a huge positive in his life.”

According to a 2022 report stemming from the organization’s Wish Impact Survey, nine of 10 Wish parents saw their child’s emotional well-being improve with their wish, and nine of 10 doctors observed the Wish experience help relieve traumatic stress.

Eight of 10 parents said it gave the child a stronger sense of empowerment, and eight of 10 doctors said a child’s experience with Make-A-Wish served as a coping mechanism during treatment.

And according to the Canadian Cancer Society, 21 Canadian children (ages 0-14) died from leukemia in 2022, while 250 were diagnosed with the form of cancer in 2019.

The 2025 Heroes Challenge was proudly sponsored by rdnewsNOW and BIG105.