Tinley Park Chamber of Commerce Help Kids With Cancer

The Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation recently received toys to benefit children fighting cancer thanks to the tireless work of the Tinley Park Chamber of Commerce. The Orland Park-based non-profit Foundation provides comfort and distraction from painful treatments to children and teens diagnosed with cancer by providing a toy or gift card in 50 Children’s Cancer Treatment Centers nationwide.

The Tinley Park Chamber of Commerce hosted their annual holiday party at the V. F. W. Post 2791 banquet hall in Tinley Park. Each guest was asked to bring a new unwrapped toy to benefit children undergoing cancer treatments. Guests enjoyed dinner, open bar, entertainment and raffles.

Treasure Chest Foundation CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel expressed her appreciation, saying, “The Treasure Chest Foundation is especially grateful for this enormous donation. Thanks to the generosity of the Tinley Park community thousands of children fighting cancer will continue to be rewarded with a toy or gift card for their bravery.”

The POTCF’s unique services impact more than 10,000 young cancer patients each month in 50 hospitals across 18 states and the District of Columbia. Nowhere else in the nation does such a program exist. Ms. Kisel founded the organization in 1996 after her then seven-year-old son Martin had been diagnosed with leukemia in 1993. She 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 23rd anniversary of remission from the disease earlier this year.

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.