This Miami Herald charity has raised millions. Here’s how you can help this year
Since its founding nearly 125 years ago, the Miami Herald has championed the needs of the less fortunate in our community.
In 1952 the Miami Herald Lend-a-Hand-Fund was incorporated to formalize these efforts. In December 1982, the Herald published its first Wish Book as a standalone section to spotlight the greatest needs of individuals in South Florida. Since then, Wish Book has grown into an annual tradition, with stories throughout the holiday season spotlighting some of the greatest personal challenges in our community.
The stories are written by Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald staffers, along with Florida International University journalism students.
Readers respond with gifts that have included household essentials like furniture, appliances and even new roofs or kitchen rebuilds. Wishes for toys and medical equipment, along with monetary donations, are granted. Computers have become popular gifts to help younger family members keep up with schoolwork and for their parents and caretakers to connect.
During the 2024 Wish Book season, a period that granted wishes for 184 South Florida families representing 690 individuals and raised more than $285,000 in funds, “one particularly touching gift was a new keyboard for an autistic musician with big dreams,” said Wish Book coordinator Roberta DiPietro.
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“For the past 44 seasons, Wish Book has highlighted the best part of our community — our generosity toward those in need,” said Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald Executive Editor Alex Mena.
“Our annual holiday series featuring neighbors quietly struggling to get by gives us all a chance to step up and change lives. Sadly, the need is as real today as it was in 1982, when the Miami Herald launched this campaign. So this holiday season, please give and show that our community cares,” Mena said.
Here’s some Wish Book history and details on how you can help.
How you can help
To donate go to www.miamiherald.com/wishbook and select Donate button at the top of the page. You may choose to donate in honor of a specific individual or in memory of someone.
All donations to the Miami Herald Charities’ Wish Book are tax-deductible.
Questions? Call 305–376-2906 or email wishbook@miamiherald.com.
Generous readers change lives
Since that first Wish Book in 1982, more than 80,000 Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald readers have contributed more than $13 million in money and goods, DiPietro said.
Those readers have helped more than 23,000 individuals, reflecting a broad spectrum of people in South Florida: Veterans, medically challenged adults and children, low-income families, foster children, teens aging out of foster care, children with special needs, children and adults on the autism spectrum, people battling cancer or its aftermath, paralyzed individuals, the elderly, crime victims, and people who have endured hurricanes or other natural disasters.
“Every contribution, no matter the size, helps restore hope and stability to families right here in our community,” DiPietro said.
What do people need?
Gifts range from food, clothes and toys for the holidays to medical services, wheelchairs, lifts, housing, accessible-home modifications, and furniture.
“In past years, wishes often focused on gifts or special experiences. This year, the requests are much more basic — food, clothing, laptops for students, and housing help. These are fundamental needs, and they show just how hard it’s become for many local families to stay afloat. With the continued support of our donors, we can make these wishes come true,” DiPietro said.
“This year the rise in food insecurity was noted as a huge challenge,” DiPietro said. “Increases in daily living expenses are impacting all. While our readers have always been supportive, the economic challenges faced by all are a pressing issue.”
How nominees are found
Typically, about 150 to 180 nominees are submitted by nonprofits and government agencies serving South Florida. Their stories are featured throughout the holiday season in the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.
In early October more than 600 nonprofit social service agencies are contacted by Herald Charities staff to nominate clients for the Wish Book, DiPietro said.
Wish Book candidates are clients who have already received services from those agencies but whose needs go beyond the agency’s resources. The Wish Book team screens the nominees and chooses a representative sampling whose stories will be featured in the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald.
Goal: all wishes answered
“Our policy is to collect funds on behalf of all our nominees, and to complete the wishes of all nominees at the level that seasonal donations — including cash and in-kind contributions — allow,” DiPietro said.
“While we attempt to grant the wishes of every nominee, at least to some degree, we rely on the level of generosity of our readers to provide funding to complete the most complex wishes,” DiPietro said. “Through the generosity of our readers coupled with generous donations and funding through grants and foundations, we have been able to grant almost all of the wishes over the years.”
This story was originally published November 20, 2025 at 10:00 AM.
