Simonetta was a fashion icon and sought-after model in her native Italy.

by Len Lear

Simonetta Lein, who was a best-selling author, professional model, TV personality and fashion icon in her native Italy and is now known as the “celebrity wishmaker,” will be present at a fundraising Garden Brunch in support of the Wish Wall Foundation this Sunday, June 26, 1 to 3 p.m., at the home of Julie and John O’Connell, 123 W. Gravers Lane.

Lein, 33, whose parents are both doctors, has a fine arts degree and a counseling degree from Italy as well as an honorary doctorate from the Universita Tiberina Ponte Sicia in Rome. She is called the “celebrity wishmaker” because of her Wish Wall Foundation, a nonprofit that attempts to make wishes come true.

Born and raised in a region of Northern Italy called Friuli Venezia Giulia, Simonetta and her husband, Raphael Amabile, moved to East Falls one year ago. “We sold everything we had and left Italy,” said Simonetta last week. “Raphael is originally from North Jersey, but we fell in love with Philadelphia. We love it here.”

Simonetta was a columnist for Vanity Fair Italy and served as Brand Ambassador to several of Italy’s top luxury fashion, accessory and beauty brands. She was featured many times on TV in Italy, and her first book, “Everything Is Possible: A Novel About the Power of Dreams,” published by Sperling & Kupfer in 2013, was a best-seller in Italy. (An English language version is available from amazon.com)

The Italian transplant is currently a contributing fashion and lifestyle journalist and celebrity interviewer (opera singer Andrea Bocelli, chef Lidia Bastianich, etc.) for The Huffington Post, Italo Americano, Vogue Italia, Elle Italy, D di Repubblica and other publications. Simonetta has been featured locally on Fox-TV29, CBS-TV3 and WMCN Philadelphia.

In 2015 Lein founded the charitable organization, The Wish Wall Foundation. Its website provides a space for people from around the world to post their deepest wish or desire on its “Wish Wall.” The 501C-3 foundation then collaborates with other nonprofit groups to try to make some of the wishes come true.

Since it is less than a year old, it has nowhere near the status or influence yet to provide luxury vacations and similar gifts, like the Make-a-Wish Foundation. “I’m not a magician,” Simonetta said, “but any person who is in a position to help others should do so. Some people just need a place where they can be heard.”

One 16-year-old girl whose father had been laid off wanted to jump from a plane with a parachute, and the foundation was able to make it happen, then posted the video on YouTube.

One girl who had been bullied and even had her hair burned wanted to meet her favorite member of the English boy band, One Direction. The Wish Wall Foundation was not able to negotiate that, but they were able to get an autograph from the singer. “She was delighted,” said Lein. (One problem, of course, is that celebrities regularly get requests like this from all over the world, especially now that social media are ubiquitous, so it is probably harder than ever to fulfill such wishes.)

Last September a 33-year-old woman, Theresa Pozzi, was killed by a hit-and-run driver in South Philadelphia. Her sister asked the Wish Wall Foundation if they could get a street in South Philly named after the victim. Working with City Councilman Mark Squilla, the foundation was in fact able to get the city to erect a permanent sign for “Theresa’s Way,” which was formerly the 600 block of Kimball Street in South Philly, two days before Christmas.

“It was a miracle,” said Simonetta, “and that family has become part of my family.” (They also got a billboard put up offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the killer, but so far no arrest has been made.)

During Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia last year, the foundation also put up a “Wish Wall” at 9th and Montrose Streets in the Italian Market. One mother contacted the foundation and said she wanted to get her adopted 11-year-old daughter into a performing arts school. She had been unable to do so on her own.

Simonetta researched the situation and was able to find a tuition-free school that was willing to give the girl an audition. Simonetta then gave the girl singing and acting lessons. “We were told we would know soon what the school decides,” she said, “but I am very optimistic that she will get in.”

The fundraising event this Sunday is in the Gravers Lane home of John O’Connell, a realtor who found the East Falls home for Simonetta and her husband. “We love the home,” said Simonetta, who is currently creating a clothing line and who will be modeling for a famous fashion designer during New York Fashion Week in September. “I work for fashion designers,” she said, “who do good things for good causes.”

More information about the foundation at www.wishwallfoundation.com. More information about Sunday’s event at 267-312-1925 or john@ewrhomes.com