The Sunshine Foundation of Canada is a national charitable organization that makes dreams come true for children with severe physical disabilities or life-threatening illnesses.

Our vision is that every Sunshine child shall live their Dream.

Sunshine is the only National Canadian charity fulfilling dreams for kids with severe disabilities as well as life-threatening illnesses. In fact, 80% of Sunshine kids are challenged by a severe physical disability.

The Beginning of a Dream

Sunshine was established in 1987 by a London, Ontario police officer as a legacy to his son who passed away of muscular dystrophy. He wanted children like his son to be able to live their Dream. In October of that year the first DreamLift flew from London to Walt Disney World in Florida with 203 children on three planes.

Only a few years laters, in 1990, Sunshine was truly national. Individual Dreams and DreamLifts had made dreams come true for kids in BC, Alberta, the Yukon, PEI, and New Brunswick. Volunteers in Ontario and British Columbia had founded 8 Chapters.

Spreading the Sunshine

In 1994, the ‘Sunshine Highway to Dreams’ involved a cross-country trek by our mascot, Bear. The tour stopped in 33 communities and resulted in more new volunteer chapters. By December, Sunshine’s total number of dreams-to-date was 2,630.

The Foundation celebrated its 10th anniversary with a ‘Walk-for-Dreams’ held simultaneously in 31 communities on Saturday, June 21st, 1997. By 2000, we became officially known as “Sunshine Dreams For Kids.” Celebrities ranging from hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky to Barney the Dinosaur were helping us fulfill Individual Dreams and Sunshine DreamLifts were winging kids away for day-long adventures out of cities across the country, like Halifax, Sault Ste. Marie and Edmonton.

Dreams to Come

Approximately 50,000 children across Canada medically qualify for a Sunshine Dream. Many of them have endured more than we can ever comprehend. Although Sunshine's resources are limited, these kids have entrusted us with their most personal hopes and dreams - they must not be kept waiting.

Our goal is to reduce or even eliminate the waiting time for every child who has qualified for a dream. We continue to grow and to raise awareness of Sunshine in communities throughout the country. Together, we can make Sunshine Dreams a reality for even more kids, and sooner!