The Rainbow Connection is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Rochester Hills that works to make wishes come true for Michigan children with life threatening medical conditions. In addition, the organization provides support services to eligible wish families in need. The late L. Brooks Patterson, former Oakland County executive, founded the organization officially in 1985. The Rainbow Connection has granted more than 4,000 wishes to Michigan children, as well as provided special assistance to wish families. The first wish granted by the organization was when Muhammed Ali shadow-boxed at the bedside of John Bowden, a wish child, at Children’s Hospital in Detroit.
