The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a hugely important organization, with the mission to grant the wishes of children and teens diagnosed with critical illnesses, no matter how big or small the wish may be. Today, Alembic Guitars shared a heartwarming post about a recent gift the Make-A-Wish Foundation coordinated, which saw the company team with Guild Guitars and Phil Lesh for a custom-made dream bass for a New Jersey kid named Joe.

For Joe’s dream bass, Alembic modified a bass donated by Guild “to echo Phil Lesh’s Big Brown bass with a removable Bird’s-eye Maple front plate and Alembic pickups and electronics.” However, given that Joe’s dream instrument was inspired by Phil Lesh, Ron Wickersham and Mica Wickersham Thomas had another special surprise in store, driving the instrument out to Phil Lesh’s Terrapin Crossroads to sign the inside of the electronics cavity.

This special extra touch is not necessarily surprising given Alembic’s longstanding history with the Grateful Dead. After being founded in 1969 by Ron and Susan Wickersham—the couple’s daughter, Mica Wickersham Thomas, now serves as the company’s general manager—the company shared a San Francisco premise with the Grateful Dead in the early years, providing much of the band’s audio technology, including the group’s massive PA system as well as Phil Lesh’s, Jerry Garcia‘s, and Bob Weir’s pickups.

Thus, this special and secret autograph that Alembic secured made the bass all the more special. As Joe’s father shared on Facebook, “I can’t say enough about Make-A-Wish, Guild guitars and especially the folks at Alembic, who arranged for Joe’s favorite musician to sign his new bass—such great organizations.”

Much love and many thanks to Phil, Alembic, Guild, and Make-A-Wish for making this awesome gift come together. Also, our love and support goes out to Joe; we hope to run into you a concert sometime soon! If you liked this post, please consider donating money to the Make-A-Wish Foundation here, so that other kids can have their days brightened!