John Cena, Sheamus and Layla host Make-A-Wish pizza party
MIAMI –The Superstars and Divas continued to give back to the Miami community during WrestleMania XXVIII Week., Sheamus and Layla hosted the annual pizza party for the more than 40 children and families from Make-A-Wish Foundation and WWE’s Circle of Champions at Jungle Island Saturday. ()Cena, a Make-A-Wish Ambassador and previous recipient of the prestigious Chris Greicius Celebrity Award, is quickly nearing a record 300 wishes. At Jungle Island, Cena, along with
As he mentioned during Wednesday’s WrestleMania Press Conference, the Cenation Leader has been looking forward to Saturday’s pizza party for quite some time. At the press conference, Cena talked about the amazing "power of the wish," and the smiling faces of Saturday’s Wish kids certainly confirmed that sentiment. Amongst those smiling faces was Dylan, a very special personal guest of the Cenation Leader.
After enjoying their pizza lunch Saturday afternoon, faces around the room lit up as Cena, Sheamus and Layla arrived at Jungle Island. The Superstars got to work immediately, handing out special WWE Circle of Champions Certificates plaques to each Wish kid.
Upon his arrival to the event, a smiling Cena said, "I’m so glad everyone could be here to enjoy Jungle Island. And Sheamus." Layla was also thrilled to be a part of today's Make-A-Wish event, and she had nothing but praise for the organization. "Everyone wants a dream to come true and the Make-A-Wish Foundation does that for these kids."
While the Make-A-Wish pizza party is a yearly tradition, Saturday's festivities marked the first time that the event was held outdoors, a nice touch thanks to the beautiful Miami weather.
As another added bonus, the "Hardcore Legend" himself, Mick Foley, just so happened to be at Jungle Island, enjoying the venue with his family. Foley, who is always generous with his time, couldn't resist stopping by the party to say hello and make new friends. Foley's constant grin said everything there is to say about events such as this one.
Even with his epic match against WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan looming tomorrow at WrestleMania XXVIII, The Celtic Warrior was all smiles today, saying, "I'm proud to be a part of the Make-A-Wish celebration. This is an incredible charity and an incredible organization." Sheamus added, pointedly, "The kids have been great." The Cenation Leader agreed, stating, "Every guest is special."
Layla talked about some of the kids she met Saturday, saying, "Bradley was a charmer. He gave the best hugs." She added, "I got a couple of kisses which I was really, really happy about!"
Sheamus and Layla also got the chance to hang out with some animal friends at Jungle Island and introduce them to the Wish kids. Sheamus described the scene, saying, "I picked up a four-year-old gator named Rambo!" Layla even got a parrot named Hilo to eat a grape from her mouth.
As the day's festivities started to wind down, Sheamus said, "I'm proud to be a part of Make-A-Wish today and I hope to do many, many more."
In addition to meeting their favorite Superstars at Saturday’s pizza party, this year’s Wish kids will also watch The Show of Shows together Sunday night at Sun Life Stadium where they'll be on hand to witness John Cena's historic bout against The Rock.
Over the past 25 years, WWE has granted more than 3,500 wishes (and counting) with Make-A-Wish Foundation, putting smiles on the faces of Wish children and their families.
WWE Teams with Seacrest Foundation
WWE Superstars R-Truth andThe Superstars were on hand to be interviewed by children at the hospital and the interviews were broadcast live to each room in the hospital via their internal radio station. After the show, Truth and Marella hung out with the kids, taking photos and signing autographs.
The Ryan Seacrest Foundation’s first initiative is to build broadcast media centers inside pediatric hospitals for children to explore the creative realms of radio, television and new media. In addition to Philadelphia, there are stations currently in Atlanta and Boston, and there are plans for expansion in Dallas and Orange County.
Big Show, David Otunga and Stephanie McMahon lead be a STAR rally in Bridgeport, Conn.
trio were welcomed to the school by Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch and
State Representative Andres Ayala Jr., who presented McMahon with a
citation for the be a STAR Alliance’s work in fighting against bullying.“Kids define themselves. Other people’s hurtful words don't define them,” McMahon said.
She then encouraged the students to help stop bullying and learn to show tolerance and respect for each other.
Big Show, who stands in at seven feet tall, talked about how his size made him a target for bullies. At the age of 12, The World’s Largest Athlete was six feet, two inches tall and weighed 220 pounds. “Other kids called me names and threw rocks at me,” Big Show said.
He continued by telling the children something that helped him get through the bullying. “If you're bullied there's nothing wrong with you. It's not your fault,” the former World Heavyweight Champion said.
Otunga, who is also a Harvard-educated lawyer, shared experiences of when he was bullied as a child growing up in Chicago because he wore glasses. “They didn't know they were bullying me. They thought they were being funny,” he explained to the kids.
For Otunga, the bullying ended when his tormentors found out the effect their words had.
“Once the bullies were told they were hurting my feelings, the bullying stopped,” the former WWE Tag Team Champion said.
Big Show closed out the rally by leading the children in a chant to re-enforce the message of the assembly. “Don’t be a bully,” the Superstar bellowed.
“Be a STAR!,” the kids yelled back.
The fifth through eighth grade students are part of the “Lighthouses in the Community” program, which provides the city’s youth with a safe and supportive environment after school and in the summer.
The be a STAR Alliance is a partnership between WWE and more than 50 organizations, including The Creative Coalition, GLAAD and the Girl Scouts of America. For more information, go to You can also follow the alliance on and .
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