Lemont Realty Executives Elite Employees Help Children Fighting Cancer

The employees at Realty Executives Elite in Lemont are making it their business when it comes to children and teens fighting cancer. When the local real estate agency recently hosted a Winter Wonderfest and asked their guests to bring a toy donation, more than 300 people arrived at the Lemont location for pictures with Santa in a sleigh, hot cocoa, beautifully decorated cookies, crafts for the little ones, a personalized ornament station, take-away goodie bags and a chance to win a $100 Target gift card. When the festive occasion had concluded, the Winter Wonderfest had accumulated over 675 toys and $20 in gift cards on behalf of the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation (POTCF) to directly benefit children fighting cancer.

Realty Executives Elite in Lemont is one of the area’s leading real estate agencies, offering residential and commercial real estate, rentals, foreclosures and more to residents of Lemont, Lockport, Homer Glen, Orland Park and surrounding areas since 1998. When asked about the toy drive, Realty Executives Elite Owner Chris Budz said, “We like that this is a local charity and it’s good to see where the toys go. We like seeing the pictures of the kids enjoying the toys.” Megan Beechen chimed in, “We know how much of a difference this can make. Thinking about the joy a toy can bring to a child makes all of our efforts worthwhile.”

Treasure Chest Foundation CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel said, “We are extremely grateful to Owner Chris Budz and the entire Realty Executives Elite family. It is amazing to receive such a tremendous donation. The Winter Wonderfest was an exceptional elite holiday extravaganza.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 16,100 young cancer patients in 66 cancer treatment centers in 21 states across the nation and in the District of Columbia. Nowhere else in the nation does such a program exist. Colleen Kisel founded the organization in 1996 after her then seven-year-old son Martin had been diagnosed with leukemia in 1993. Ms. Kisel discovered that giving her son a toy after each procedure provided a calming distraction from his pain, noting that when children are diagnosed with cancer their world soon becomes filled with doctors, nurses, chemotherapy drugs, surgeries and seemingly endless painful procedures. Martin celebrated his 29th anniversary of remission from the disease in March of this year.

If you would like further information about the Treasure Chest Foundation, please contact Colleen Kisel at 1-708-687-TOYS (8697) or visit the Foundation’s website at www.treasurechest.org.