Make-A-Wish® Illinois Chapter

Dr. Stewart Goldman

Anyone who has been to Children's Memorial Hospital knows Dr. Goldman. His upbeat and warm attitude is sure to put many of his patients and their parents at ease. On any given day, you can see him walking through the halls with his baseball cap, usually singing loudly, or roaming around the day hospital playing games with his patients.

As an expert in the field of pediatric Nuero-Oncology, Dr. Goldman supports the Make-A-Wish Foundation because he believes that his patients benefit from having a wish granted. Since he began his involvement with the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois in 2000, he has been the organization's top and longest-standing referral source.

Over the years, Dr. Goldman has referred more than 200 of his patients to Make-A-Wish

Dr. Goldman hugs patient and wish child Breanna.

because he says he considers a wish to be an integral component of each patient's treatment protocol. He shares this belief with his professional colleagues, who have, in turn, introduced the Make-A-Wish Foundation to their patients, helping to ensure that every eligible child is offered the opportunity to have a wish granted.

When asked about his favorite wish over the years, Dr. Goldman responded, "It is hard to pick a favorite wish, but one that stands out in my memory, was many years ago for a child who wanted to meet the reptile curator at the San Diego Zoo. The reptile coordinator was so incredibly honored that this child's wish was to meet him that he ended up having the child and their family to his house for dinner. This wish truly showed how powerful a wish can be, not only to the child and wish family, but to others who are involved in the process."

Dr. Goldman spent many years as a medical advisor to both the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois and Make-A-Wish Foundation of America, helping the Foundation learn how to serve children with life-threatening medical conditions in a way that supports their overall treatment. As a member of the Board of Directors for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois from 2000 to 2006, he was an integral part of planning for the Foundation's future, helping it to grow to the largest Make-A-Wish chapter in the country.

As the current Medical Director of Neuro-oncology and Director of the Clinical Trials Center at Children's Memorial Hospital, Dr. Goldman also serves as an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. He is also the Gus Foundation Chair of Neuro-oncology.

He encourages his patients to live their lives as normally as possible and is passionate about providing the best care and support he can for the patients and families he interacts with each and every day. Not only is Dr. Goldman a special member of the Children's Memorial community, he is also an essential part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois.

"Throughout my career the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois has been a great motivational influence. The Foundation has been such a positive force in the life of the children and families I care for; and the wish experience is unbelievably powerful, bringing together families, volunteers, staff members and the entire community," said Dr. Goldman.