We were lucky to catch up with Missy Phipps recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Missy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Ally’s Wish was started in 2014. Allyson Hendrickson was someone that I knew from church and felt a call to do something for her. She was terminally ill and had 3 young boys. All her physical needs were being met, I just felt like there was something else to do. One day while I was driving God gave me the idea of Ally’s Wish, to grant wishes to terminally ill young moms. So I called three of my friends to have them come over that night to discuss. They came over and Ally’s Wish was created. We had the organization completely set up before surprising with it. She would, of course, be the first wish granted! So we asked her to dinner and told her the news, it was a precious time with her. Her wish was to have her 8 year blog, which journaled her road with cancer, published for her boys to read one day. So we did that and then had it edited and published and it is now a book we sell with proceeds going ot her boys and a small portion to Ally’s Wish.

Missy, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a single Mom of four kiddos ages 23, 18, 13, 13, a sweet Great Pyrenees named Remy, and a cute bunny named Petey Rabbit! I sell Real Estate in the Denton County/Dallas Area. I love my career, and enjoy helping people on their Real Estate journey. But my passion is Ally’s Wish. The joy it gives me to be able to help grant wishes to dying moms is an indescribable feeling. It’s a privilege to serve these families in what is likely the darkest time. We provide travel, experiences, and/or gifts. If a mom is urgent and too sick to travel, we will do Christmas year around, we’ve done birthday parties, jewelry, puppies, backyard living areas, movie rooms. Anything we can to create some memories for the sweet kids. We are currently working on a wish that includes a home visit from barnyard animals and pony rides as well as flying family in to see the mom. While it can be hard on the heart at times, we wouldn’t trade it for the world. Ally’s Wish has an amazing team that selflessly serves and are the heart of the organization.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Managing a team is rewarding and challenging all at once. Especially when most of your team are volunteers and giving their time and talents out of the goodness of their heart. There’s a lot I’ve had to learn when it comes to managing a team. Mainly that everyone is different and that you have to pivot at times to meet people where they are to be able to lead them. With the work that we do, things can be very heavy at times. To the point where burnout can come very quickly. So trying to focus on the good we are doing and how excited the Mom is as opposed to the outcome for her down the road is key. I get excited when I’m able to work on a wish and I’ll call someone on the team to share that enthusiasm. My hope is that they too will take that enthusiasm and carry it as they grant wishes and therefore focus on the positive. We have lots of tears….it’s to be expected. But when we meet we talk about the wins of the wishes and the joy we see as pictures come in from the moms after their wish is granted. I also try and thank my team for all they do every time we are together. Again, with what we do things can get heavy, so I try to make sure they know they are appreciated and that what they do makes a difference that will last for generations. I wasn’t always great at being that encourager. I felt like the work we were doing by granting wishes was reward enough. But that’s not the case. People that volunteer need to be seen and praised. I’m so thankful for each of them and how they are a part of Ally’s Wish success. I am always learning and trying to get better at leading, I think everyone has room to improve at leading. That’s what leaders do!

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I think with Ally’s Wish, my team’s resilience is apparent every day. With the work we do, we have the possibility of it being sad and hard to handle since we are dealing with dying Moms, and the sadness we feel when we lose a mom can be overwhelming. But everyday we get up refreshed and ready to start on the next wishes. And we have the excitement of making the call to tell a Mom that it’s her turn to have a wish granted. I had to take some time away from granting wishes due to losing a Mom that I had become very close to. Sometimes you feel that it just doesn’t make sense why these moms have to go through such terrible days. But after a few years away, I am back on it granting wishes and even traveling to grant wishes. And I have an amazing excitement about it. So again, my team is resilient every day that they are working hard to grant wishes. The darkness that can come is real, but everyday they come back with their huge heart and occasionally with tears in their eyes ready to get to know the next mom and grant their wish.

Image Credits
Image Credit to Bob Manzano Photography