John Cena Explains Why He Doesn’t Do Much Make-A-Wish Outside WWE

John Cena is known in a lot of ways as the face of Make-A-Wish particularly for WWE, something he weighed in on recently. Cena has dedicated himself to doing Make-A-Wish work within WWE for years and holds the record for most wishes granted with over 650.

Cena spoke on What Now? With Trevor Noah about his Make-A-Wish work. He spoke about why his work with the organization is mostly WWE-related, stating that his job with Make-A-Wish is to be a “conduit for joy” and how the WWE environment is well-suited for that. He also said that with his in-ring career over, that chapter is closing for him and it’s time for others like Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes and more to be the conduit for joy. You can see the highlights below:

On His Make-A-Wish Work:

“So I’ve talked about this a little. My piece in that puzzle is to provide escape, to provide a much needed day off for not only a child, but a family that, the math isn’t on their side. They’re the anomaly. You know, the life expectancy exists for a reason, because we got a bunch of people and they live to be this, ‘Hey, you’re supposed to make it to whatever it is now.’ Loss is tough for everybody. The toughest losses are like the ones where you didn’t get a fair shot. If you’re supposed to make it to 75, how you calling it quits at six? Like, that’s tough. My piece in in that journey is to provide escape and to be a conduit for joy. And if I cannot do that; if I’m not able to fulfill those duties, walk away.”

On His Make-A-Wish Work Being Mostly WWE-Related:

“I don’t do much with Make-A-Wish outside of WWE. Because I believe that the environment is not the correct conduit for joy. Bring a kid to a movie set — unless they’re a movie junkie, of which I’ve done. We’ve put Make-A-Wish kids in movies. Those are long, boring days. It’s very patient; nothing really happens. We do things over and over and over again. And for a young person who probably is has an awareness of time that most young people don’t have — not a good experience.

“But you bring them into an arena at 5:00 when they skip the line. And they get in a private room, and everybody comes to say hi to them? And then we sit down and we kick it? Like, ‘Hey, I’m wearing this stuff. You guys, where are you guys sitting? What’s your sign say? Awesome. You want to see anything out there tonight? Tips, strategy?’ And they’ll be like, ‘Ah, man. You do this, do this.’ And I plan the action so I can go back and do it. And I know where they’re at, I’m like, ‘Thanks!’ And it doesn’t mess up the show. I’m not going into business for one consumer, but I’m making — it’s a conduit for joy.”

“I love the Make-A-Wish charity. I also don’t do it a lot outside of WWE, because it’s not the escape. It’s more of a burden. You have travel [for] the families. And then they get to a place and it’s like, ‘Ah, this kind of wasn’t what I thought.’ Even the most shy kids, even the kids that are up against it, who have just enough wherewithal to travel — everybody gets a day off. Of those — however many the number is, everyone gets a day off. Everybody.

On His Time As the Make-A-Wish Guy in WWE Closing:

“And like that’s the thing. I don’t do the thing selfishly just to keep doing it. This is not the environment for that. We need to get him to the show, you know what I’m saying? And that’s why kind of my chapter there is closing, and it should be Roman’s turn. It should be Cody’s turn. It should be Seth’s turn. It should be Je’Von Evans’ turn. It should be Bron Breaker’s turn, and Charlotte Flair, and Becky Lynch. They need to be the conduit for joy.

“And I think it’s understanding what you’re doing, and also understanding that like — yo, just because I’ve helped promote this thing and some folks would use me as the face of this thing? It’s time to pass it on. Very much like wrestling. I’m on the front of the poster, but it’s time to go. So being able to be that conduit is just understanding what you’re doing. And the experience, the wisdom, the lessons I’ve learned. I value every f**king second.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit What Now? With Trevor Noah with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.