Ten years ago the Foundation and NZ motor cross champ Josh Coppins surprised Oliver with a mountain bike - his biggest wish at the time.
Now 24, it's not surprising that Oliver has developed a taste for motorsport and has decided to enter the TQ (three quarter) midget car races at Speedway in Westport. Wanting to give back to the Make-A-Wish Foundation for his mountain bike, Oliver has dedicated his midget car to them and will also be fundraising so other children with chronic conditions can enjoy some moments of joy.
“It’s an awesome Foundation. Sometimes with sick kids money isn’t all that great so it’s really cool if they can get a mountain bike or go overseas,” he says.
Oliver’s first race was at Westport but unfortunately a frightening crash into a wall in the last race put his midget car out of action and left Oliver with some serious bruising. But it hasn’t put Oliver off the sport at all. He’s planning to have it fixed in time for the Speedway season which kicks off in September
Oliver is now in the process of re-building the broken car. “I will have to spend quite a bit of money on that to get it fixed, but that’s okay because I’m in quite a good position,” says Oliver, who works long hours at his timber-treating job at Carter Holt Harvey in Nelson. “My good friends Chris and Cam are helping me fix it and I can’t thank them both enough for there long hours.”
Car racing doesn’t seem to have had any effect on Oliver’s CF, although he can start coughing towards the end of a race – an obstacle that won’t defeat Oliver. “We’re going to try to put a Camelbak (hydration pack) in the car so I can sip on water to suppress the cough,” he explains.
New Zealanders with CF aged between 3-17 years are eligible for Make-A-Wish grants. Phone Make-A-Wish for an application form on 0800 807080. There have been some amazing wishes come true over the years including one young man who won a trip to see Manchester United play. International travel is now limited to Australia because of travel insurance restrictions.
