Earlier this week, WWE superstar Rey Mysterio visited the Make-A-Wish America headquarters in Phoenix to personally grant his 100th wish by surprising lifelong fan Max La Caria.
Now in his 20s, La Caria met John Cena as a Wish Kid in 2008 and was his special guest at WrestleMania XXIV.
“I just really appreciate what they go through in and out of the ring,” said La Caria. “It’s just inspiring, I guess. But yeah, I just love it.”
Mysterio was a big part of hosting him and 49 other Wish Kids that made the trip to Orlando that year, and meeting La Caria again was the 100th wish he’s personally granted since the start of his WWE career.
Make-A-Wish America CEO Leslie Motter said the decades-old partnership with the WWE has been one of their most longstanding, but granting that many wishes is no small effort.
“I was with Rey earlier this year in Philadelphia,” said Motter, “and the care that he put into calling out each of the kids' names as they came out and had a superstar experience, and to see the joy on their faces was really, really something that none of us that were there will forget quickly.”
Mysterio immediately began granting wishes in 2003 and has never turned one down.
“When you connect in such a way like this where you literally put a smile on kids’ faces, and families' — it just, in a sense it kind of brings you in together, tighter,” said Mysterio. “So we were just going over, reminiscing on events we had done in the past,” he added, referring to his conversation with La Caria.
He said that as long as he’s able to, he’ll continue to show up for more Wish Kids: “As long as I’m breathing.”