A True Cinderella Story Benefits Children with Can

With the clock set to strike midnight, attendees of Orland Park Recreation and Parks Department’s Eleventh Annual Cinderella Ball recently made sure that children and teens battling cancer would have something to smile about. The royal ball, attended by more than 200 young children with their parents, provided not only a chance to enjoy food, activities and dancing, but served to benefit the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation (POTCF), an Orland Park-based, non-profit organization which provides toys and gift cards to childhood cancer patients.

Those benefits were provided for a 5th year, thanks to the compassion of Rob and Elise Wehmeier, proprietors of Wehmeier Portraits of Orland Park, who were on hand to create special digital photo memories of the evening. The couple took photos of 95 dads and daughters who had been encouraged to dress up for the special occasion—at the ball’s entrance for a fee of $15 or a toy donation. Once purchased, the digital images were promptly emailed to the participants, allowing them to print or share the pictures on social media with friends and family.

After the festive event drew-to-a-close and Cinderella had finally rushed to her waiting carriage, minus one glass slipper, of course, an impressive $295 and more than 100 toys had been collected to benefit brave young cancer patients nationwide. “We respect what the Treasure Chest does. They provide great services to those that are hurting, and we saw through the Cinderella Ball that it seems to be a great match helping children,” said Elise Wehmeier.

POTCF CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel expressed her profound gratitude for the generous support shown by the Wehmeiers and the Cinderella Ball attendees. “The Treasure Chest Foundation is especially grateful for this enormous donation of toys and for the impressive amount of money raised by so many caring families on this wonderful evening,” said Ms. Kisel. “Their generosity will help our Foundation to continue supporting thousands of children and teens each month at cancer treatment centers across the country.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 14,000 young cancer patients in 59 cancer treatment centers in 20 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 27th anniversary of remission from the disease in March of 2020.

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:

Wehmeier Portraits Proprietors Elise Wehmeier, Rob Wehmeier and son Ryan proudly display toys and $295 to the Treasure Chest Foundation, representing proceeds from the Eleventh Annual Cinderella Ball. They are pictured at the Treasure Chest Foundation’s Orland Park facility with over 100 of the evening’s donated toys which will eventually be shipped to cancer treatment centers nationwide and help provide smiles of joy to brave childhood cancer patients.