The Wishnatzki Family
Wish Farms Toy Drive
Family Foundation. “It aligned perfectly, not only because we feel so horribly about what’s going on in Ukraine, but also because it aligns perfectly with our foundation and its mission,” he said. The Wish Farms Family Foundation was established in 2019 to better focus the family’s philanthropic and community efforts, Wishnatzki said. To that point, giving had been heartfelt but piecemeal— they had put on some charity events and giving scholarships, but “it wasn’t very focused. It didn’t have a defined mission. There wasn’t a specific amount of money set aside. We would do things as they came along.” Defining the mission statement served to codify the family’s giving priorities, which perhaps counterintuitively allows them to pivot when a matter of urgent response comes up—such as a philanthropic response to the atrocities in Ukraine. “Our three pillars that we follow are food insecurity, child and youth education, and community,” he said. “It gives us a little bit more room to select different charities.” The Wish Farms Family Foundation food insecurity pillar directly ties it to the work WCK is doing. As Andrés tells it, the idea for WCK came from a conversation he had with his wife, Patricia, about how to provide aid in a humanitarian crisis. The crux of that conversation? “When people are hungry, send in cooks. Not tomorrow, today.” Wishnatzki said that selecting recipients like WCK is a family effort, where the group gather quarterly to talk about the budget and what charities, organizations and causes we want to support. One of the main sources of fundraising is Pixie Rock,
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MAY | JUNE 2022
Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com
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