Support for Kids Fighting Cancer Is in the Bag

Looking for an organization that will support a worthy cause, no strings attached? Actually, there are strings attached—drawstrings, to be exact—to the generous donation of 86,000 drawstring plastic bags that the Elkay Plastics Company in Schaumburg is giving to the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation (POTCF), an Orland Park-based non-profit organization that provides toys and gifts to children and teens diagnosed with cancer.

The bags will be used to cover and protect thousands of exposed toys from any contaminants such as dust before shipping and to create gift bags of coloring books, crayons and toys that will end up in the 54 nationwide Children’s Cancer Treatment Centers served by the Treasure Chest Foundation.

Elkay Plastics Company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. With eight strategically located divisions that stock almost 3,000 items, Elkay sells exclusively to wholesale distributors and offers the broadest line of flexible packaging solutions available anywhere.

POTCF Founder and CEO Colleen Kisel said, “Not a day goes by when the Treasure Chest Foundation does not use a plastic bag to either cover an unprotected toy or fill a bag with goodies. Elkay Plastic’s donation of plastic bags is so appreciated and will save the Treasure Chest Foundation hundreds of dollars on the cost of plastic bags.”

Elkay Plastics Division Operations Manager Jared Greene added, “We are happy to support a good cause and ‘fill’ their needs.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 13,300 young cancer patients enduring 20,000 clinic visits each month in 19 states across the nation. 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 26th anniversary of remission from the disease in March.

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: Elkay Plastics Division Shipping Supervisor Martin Mayorga (left) and Operations Manager Jared Greene proudly display pallets of plastic bags at their Schaumburg location. The firm is donating 86,000 plastic bags to help protect and ship toys and gifts that will benefit children and teens fighting cancer nationwide.