Treasure Chest Foundation Announces New Appointment to Board

The Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation announces the appointment of Glen Ponczak as a Board member. Glen retired in 2018 after a 30-year career with Johnson Controls, Inc., in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he served in multiple communication and finance roles, most recently as Vice President, Communication and Investor Relations. He is an owner of the digital daily news magazine OnMilwaukee.com and Lift Digital Solutions, a digital advertising and marketing agency. In addition to his new role with the Treasure Chest Foundation, he is a board member and treasurer of the non-profit Worldbuilders LLC. He and his wife Joni live in Grafton, Wisconsin and Chicago.

Glen Ponczak’s connection to the Treasure Chest Foundation dates back to the early 2000's when he learned about the organization during a cable magazine show called News & Views. The show was hosted by his mom Lydia Ponczak which featured the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation on many occasions. Colleen Kisel, CEO and Founder of the Treasure Chest Foundation, said, “We are incredibly pleased to welcome Glen Ponczak to the Board of Directors of the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation. We anticipate that Glen’s experience and skills will be an asset to our Board. We thank Glen for his willingness to serve.”

In accepting the new role, Glen said, “I have long admired the incredible work of the Treasure Chest Foundation and am honored to have this opportunity to further support its mission. As a child, my brother spent many days in hospitals. I know from personal experience how important it is to provide a little happiness and kindness on the difficult days, both for the children and their families. The good work of the Foundation speaks to me personally.”

The POTCF is a unique organization whose services impact more than 14,600 young cancer patients in 61cancer treatment centers in 20 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 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.