Matthew Kocher Foundation Youth Advisory Board Celebrate Life as they Give Back to the Community

The Matthew Kocher Foundation Youth Advisory Board, friends and family delivered several toys and $110 in gift cards to the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation (POTCF) warehouse in Orland Park. The POTCF is a non-profit organization that provides comfort and distraction from painful procedures to children and teens diagnosed with cancer by providing a toy, gift or gift card in 49 hospitals across 17 states nationwide.

The impetus to establish the Matthew Kocher Foundation originated in the hearts of Matt’s parents, John and Kathy Kocher. The Matthew Kocher Foundation’s mission is to carry on Matt’s spirit of caring for others by offering water safety education to prevent future drownings and save lives. Matt’s parents do not want any other families to experience the anguish of going through such a tragedy. The Foundation also provides scholarship awards to deserving students and provides community service opportunities to young people.

The Matthew Kocher Foundation’s motto is “Working Together to Help Others” and that is exactly what the Youth Advisory Board did by not only donating toys and gift cards but processing the toys at the Treasure Chest Foundation warehouse.
Treasure Chest Foundation CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel has a special spot in her heart for Matthew as he was a volunteer at the Treasure Chest through Boy Scouts prior to his passing. Kisel stated, “It warms my heart to see his friends and family gather to carry on this cause in his name. I appreciate their support in the midst of grief.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 9,300 young cancer patients each month. 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 22nd anniversary of remission from the disease in 2015.

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

Photo caption:

Matthew Kocher Foundation Youth Advisory Board (sitting l-r) Semat Adekoya, Katie Daly, Katy Kocher, Erin Daly, Lauren Durkin and Joe Scott, (standing l-r) Nick Kamholz, Erica Sanchez, Ryan Donahue, Mr. John Kocher (Matt’s father) and Aman Sood deliver toys destined for children fighting cancer to the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation facility in Orland Park.