Brownie Troop 65577 Makes the World a Better Place for Children

Girl Scouts requires the leadership and planning skills necessary to make a positive impact in the community. That is exactly what the members of Christa McAuliffe Elementary School District 140, 3rd grade Girl Scout Brownie Troop 65577 of Tinley Park did recently when they collected $50 in gift cards, more than 100 toys. The scouts volunteered to label and categorize the toys to benefit the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation (POTCF). The toys will comfort children fighting cancer across the nation including those receiving treatment at Hope Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn.

The Girl Scout mission is simple: To build girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place.

Girl Scout Brownie Troop Leader Dina Martinez said, “Every year we fundraise and the money we collect always goes back to the community.” Brownie Amelia Martinez who once benefited from the Treasure Chest Foundation due to a blood draw said, “The toy made me feel really happy because my shot was over and then I got to pick out a toy.” Girl Scout Brownie Troop Leader Shante Jackson chimed in by noting, “Mary Ann Casper was my daughter’s preschool teacher. Mary Ann’s grandson Jacob benefitted from the Treasure Chest Foundation’s services. We are here to support Mary Ann too.”

“The Treasure Chest Foundation is especially grateful to Girl Scout Brownie Troop 65577 for their gift of service,” said Treasure Chest Foundation CEO and Founder Colleen Kisel. “Not only do we appreciate the girls’ hard work, but we are so happy to be a part of this wonderful organization which is dedicated to making the world a better place. The Treasure Chest Foundation is a better place because of Girl Scout Brownie Troop 65577.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 15,300 young cancer patients in 64 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 28th anniversary of remission from the disease in March of 2021.

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.

Photo caption: The proud members of Tinley Park Girl Scout Brownie Troop 65577 take a break from organizing toys they collected to benefit the Treasure Chest Foundation and kids fighting cancer include (back row, left-right) Leader Dina Martinez, Sydney Boberg, Ellie Cihocki, Nia Jackson, Emily Selim, Tegan Farrell-Madonia, Leader Shanté Jackson and Leader Christine Zdunek. (front row left-right) Amelia Martinez, Violet Sheppard, Kayla Malloy, Maggie Ortiz, Evie Leib, Annabel Zdunek, Audrina Dreher and Claire Coyne.