Wednesday is DreamLift Day.
From 6 a.m. until closing the Penticton Wendyās Restaurant is donating net sales along with staff, management and ownersā wages to make the Disneyland dream come true for some special kids.
No one knows better just how much that one day means to the children with severe disabilities and life threatening illnesses than Orange County, Calif., sheriff Mike Toledo.
For two decades he has volunteered his time to escort some of the young Canadians on their whirlwind day-tour of the park.
āIt is an incredible experience just to watch them and see how much fun they have,ā said Toledo, Tuesday following his arrival in Penticton.
āItās almost indescribable, just watching those kids get off that plane, many of them need assistance you have to carry them if theyāre wheelchair bound.ā
He is joining local celebrities and dignitaries during the day to flip burgers, serve customers and whatever else is necessary to make the day a success.
The trips are organized through the Interior chapter of the Sunshine Foundation of Canada independent charity.
āI been coming up to the Okanagan Valley for four years but Iāve been on the Disneyland side of it for about 20 years,ā said Toledo.
āI first got involved when I was a young deputy sheriff.
That was my first exposure to DreamLift and I just loved it so much Iāve been a part of it every since.
This is his second year in Penticton.
āI love it up here,ā he said. āYou Canadians are very laid back, itās refreshing. I love the people, everyone is so generous and theyāre alway smiling. When we come up here they always take very good care of us.ā
While the one day in Disneyland goes by quickly Toledo noted there is a very strong bond between the sheriffs and their young friends in that short time.
āTheyāre exhausted at the end of the day but we have a very close relationship,ā said Toledo. āItās amazing to watch them go through it. They get to do more in that time than the average person would in a weekend.ā
Pentictonās Al Sismey, regional co-ordinator for the South Okanagan Similkameen Crime Stoppers program who was with Toledo Tuesday had his first opportunity last month to make the trip to California to see what the work he does up here is all about.
āIt really is hard to appreciate exactly what goes on until youāre there to witness it,ā said Sismey. āIt really does your heart good to see what you do makes people so happy.ā
Meanwhile sheriff Toledo had a special invitation for Western News readers:
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āEverybody come down to Wendyās tomorrow, donāt go shopping, donāt cook and I hope to see as many people as we can.ā
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