McCune Center resident Kim Owen got to meet Donny Osmond

BLACK MOUNTAIN – Kim Owen entered a meeting room at the Marjorie McCune Memorial Center on June 26 to the sounds of Donny Osmond’s “Puppy Love.”

She knew every word and sang along as she was led to the front of the room, standing in front of the center staff.

As Owen took his place at the front of the room, Tish Zimmerman, the director of the Twilight Wish chapter of Western North Carolina, joined him.

It was here that Owen discovered why she was in the room: she was going to have the chance to meet Osmond, a wish she had had since her childhood in Las Vegas.

“I feel like I’ve already gained a new friend,” Owen told Black Mountain News after her surprise. “I’ve never been this far from the state in my entire life. »

Osmond was a well-known teen idol singer and actor in the 1970s when he appeared on the television show “Donny and Marie,” with his sister Marie Osmond. He continues his singing performances today, touring across the country and with a Las Vegas residency at Harrah’s Casino and Hotel.

Owen has resided at the Marjorie McCune Memorial Center since he was 19 years old. Born on August 18, 1965, she has been blind since birth.

Zimmerman first met Owen when she was applying for a job at the center in 2021. She said she spent the interview talking with Owen about Osmond and bonding over their shared love of his music.

“She stayed with me,” Zimmerman told Black Mountain News on June 26. “If I could ever make his wish of meeting him come true, I would.”

Zimmerman said she became involved with Twilight Wish, a nonprofit organization that works to grant wishes to older adults. To be able to make a wish, the elderly person must be at least 65 years old and live below the poverty line or reside in a care facility.

According to its website, Twilight Wish has granted nearly 6,000 wishes since its inception in 2003.

Twilight Wish is based in Pennsylvania and has chapters across the country. The WNC chapter, based in Rutherford County, was founded by Zimmerman last year.

Zimmerman said fulfilling Owen’s wish was his first task once the chapter secured funding, which came from grants and donations. Owen’s wish to meet Osmond was made possible by a grant from the Gateway Foundation and donations from Holly Springs Baptist Church in Rutherfordton.

The wish includes airfare and a hotel stay for Owen and Vicki Beam, a McCune Center employee, as well as a front-of-house ticket to Osmond’s Las Vegas show. While Twilight Wish is not paying for her trip, Zimmerman said she paid for her own travel so she could make the trip as well.

“She’s such a sweet, lovely person,” Zimmerman said. “She deserves to do something fun, something she needs to do.”

When told she would meet Osmond, Owen said it would be “fuvvie,” a word she said means “cool.” The song that played when she got her wish, “Puppy Love,” is one of her favorites.

Owen said she considered Osmond, 66, a “protective big brother” and couldn’t wait to meet him. She described Osmond’s demeanor as “gentle” and said she felt like he would be a protective figure.

“Everyone says that because I’m blind, I shouldn’t be alone,” Owen said. “I’m so excited to have Vicki come with me, and it’s going to be the most wonderful time yet.”

Owen, Beam and Zimmerman will travel to Las Vegas September 3-5.

“I’m already counting the days,” Owen said. “I have September 3 to look forward to. …. As of today, it’s been 69 more days.

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Karrigan Monk is the reporter for Black Mountain News and Hendersonville Times-News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Contact her at [email protected].