The Make-A-Wish Foundation has been granting the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses since 1980. Most commonly, children wish to meet a celebrity, shake the hand of the president, or go to Disney World.

Mak Shulist, a critically ill nine-year-old, wished to enrich the lives of others. Before a brain tumor took Mak's life on April 9th, 2004, he got the Make-A-Wish Foundation to build something for his friends: a rock-climbing wall on the playground of Ellisville Elementary School.

Dave Knes, principal at the 600-student school in suburban Ellisville,Missouri said, "We learned a lesson from a nine-year-old—that even when we're going through tough times we should be thinking of other people and not ourselves."