Wishes Granted Blog

Dustin Wilson Wish

Jessica Kirk — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

16 year old Dustin Wilson loves electronics and Cal’s Angels was able to provide him with the new Samsung Galaxy Tab featuring a front facing camera for video chatting with friends and family while in isolation after his stem cell transplant at the end of January. We also included a Kinect for his Xbox 360 and a $100 gift card to Best Buy to purchase anything he wants once he’s released later this spring.

A special THANK YOU goes out to Verizon Wireless, Justin Deller and Ryan Way for providing Dustin with free access to their Mobile Broadband Network!

Vanessa Herrera Wish

Jessica Kirk — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

16 year old Vanessa Herrera has been battling leukemia for more than two years and really just wanted some new clothes so Cal’s Angels provided her with $375 in gift cards to Carson’s and $375 in gift cards to JC Penney for her shopping spree – hope you enjoy the new clothes Vanessa!

Thank you so much for the gift cards that were sent to me. It fills my heart with joy knowing there are foundations like Cal’s that bring joy to children and teens during difficult times in their lives. Thank you again and God Bless you all!

Sincerely,
Vanessa Herrera

Hector Ruiz Wish

Jessica Kirk — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

Hector is just turning 16 and has been battling leukemia for over a year – thanks to Cal’s supporters, Hector’s family got caught up on their gas bill and he was able to show off his new Motorola Boost Mobil i1 phone to his friends.

Thank You very much for my new phone!
-Hector Ruiz

Heriberto Salgado Wish

Jessica Kirk — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

Heriberto Salgado is a 17 year old battling ALL for over a year. His family was in need of financial assistance which Cal's Angels gladly took care of and the remaining dollars were spent on Heriberto's very own Xbox 360.

Victorino Huertero Wish

Jessica Kirk — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

Victorino Huertero is a 20 year old battling AML for over 3 years and has been living at the Ronald McDonald House waiting for his Stem Cell Transplant. He wanted a laptop to stay connected with his friends and to pass time playing games. Cal's Angels fulfilled his wish and brought him his laptop while he was receiving treatment at CMH.

Michael Scudder Wish

Jessica Kirk — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 06:00:00 GMT

Michael Scudder is a 16 year old battling ALL for 2 years. His wish was for his very own laptop which we fulfilled.

Alyssa Alvin Wish

Jessica Kirk — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 06:00:00 GMT

Alyssa Alvin is a 15 year old who has been battling leukemia since May of this year and with a 2 year treatment plan ahead of her, she really wanted a laptop to stay in touch with her friends and family while undergoing chemotherapy at the hospital in the city. Thanks again to our friends at South Elgin Best Buy for working on the laptop options so that we were able to get her what she wanted within our wish parameters!

Hi Stacey & Tom,

Thank you so much for the Dell Alienware laptop. I've been pretty busy on it today while at Children’s going through my chemo. I'm still exploring everything I can do with it. It’s going to be a long day but time seems to go by faster while I'm doing stuff on the laptop...like music videos and school work of course! Last Monday was very short since the doctor said I couldn't get chemo that day because of my low blood counts. My Dad took some pictures of me today with the laptop and he will send them to you tonight when we get back home.

Thanks Again,

Alyssa

P.S. This is my 1st email to anyone from the laptop!

Shea Anderluh Wish

Jessica Kirk — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 05:00:00 GMT

My daughter (Shea) and I were treated to an amazing evening on Monday, September 27th. We were able to attend the Chicago Bears vs the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field in fine style. With less than a week’s notice the evening was very thoughtfully made possible by Cal's Angels.

It's funny, as it was a nerve-wracking day for us...we had a number of tests scheduled at Children's to see if Shea's lungs and heart were doing ok; bad news on any of those tests could have totally ruined the evening. Not only ruined the evening, but kept us at the hospital versus attending the game. Thankfully all the tests went well and we wrapped up our day at the hospital by 3:30 leaving us already down town and ready to see the game. We used our extra time to enjoy some wings at Buffalo Wild Wings and to purchase the appropriate Chicago Bears gear. I personally indulged in a Brian Urlacher jersey and Shea bought a cute Bears’ hat and some Under Armour to help stay warm.

The evening itself was perfect football weather and the atmosphere was amazing. Both teams were 2-0 heading into the game and there were plenty of fans in town from Green Bay allowing some friendly banter between the two sides. What could have been even more amazing than having a ticket to get into the game was having a parking pass to allow us to park at the game. If you have ever attended a game at soldier field, you know that if you don't arrive 10 hours early you end up parking far away, and taking a bus (or doing a lot of walking). The parking pass worked perfectly and we were off to the game. A member of the Bears marketing team met us at Gate 10 and immediately walked us right down on to the field. There were cameras, celebrities and Bears/Packers players all over the place. Standing right next to these football players and watching how fast and how big they are was shocking. It was amazing seeing how everyday it is for these players to be in the spotlight and how well they can concentrate dispite all the distractions. We took some great pictures, mingled, but then decided it was time to grab our seats and some food!

Our seats were about 25 rows off the field in the corner of the North End zone – really great seats! We had classic "game food"...hot dogs, nachos, peanuts, salted pretzels...which is right up Shea's alley. The game itself was really tight. Neither team looked Super Bowl ready, but it was close the whole time. Bears were trailing by a few points for most of the game until Devin Hester returned a punt for a touch down right into our “living room!” We had a great view of this play as he was running right to our corner, leaping the punter before crashing into the end zone. Bears won the game on a last second field goal and we headed home.

As you can tell a great day for Shea and I. Shea has been battling through her Hodgkins Lymphoma for over two years now with lots of ups and downs along the way. Shea is amazing at keeping her head up, staying positive and not complaining about her cancer. Liz and I have gotten pretty used to juggling and dividing and conquering on things to get Shea to the hospital while keeping up with the house, work and our other two girls. Still, it's a lot of work and stress (especially for Shea) and it's awesome to be treated to an evening you couldn't arrange on your own. Thanks Cal's for that type of evening!

Very Sincerely,
John Anderluh

**Special Thank You to Caroline Schrenker from the Chicago Bears for making Shea’s wish happen with less than a week’s notice to a sold out Monday Night Football game – Awesome!

Ronald McDonald House Twin Cities 2010

Jessica Kirk — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 05:00:00 GMT

On the way to our annual family vacation in Northwest Minnesota we made a stop at the Ronald McDonald House in Minneapolis where we stayed while Cal was in treatment at the University Hospital. Because of our kind donors we were able to upgrade them from a PS2 to a complete PS3 system with four controllers and 10 games, 10 Wii games, over 20 DVD's and a $1,000 gift certificate to Target to buy much needed supplies including laundry detergent and paper towels for the house guests.

Abdullahi Husseini Wish

Jessica Kirk — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 05:00:00 GMT

Abdullahi's family are refugees from Africa living in the US and he has leukemia.
His wish was a $750 gift card to Best Buy. Our South Elgin Best Buy friends arranged for a personal shopper at the Schaumburg Best Buy to greet Abdullahi and his family and friends at the door then help them pick out a computer. Thanks to Adam Skwarlo Best Buy South Elgin for setting this up for us and making Abdullahi's experience great!

Dear Tom and Stacy,

Thank you so much for working to get the gift certificate to us for Abdullahi. We went to Best Buy on Saturday. Dylan and his team served us so well. Two of Abdullahi's sisters joined us. Of course, this was the first time they've been in Best Buy (or any store like it). So, it might as well have been Disney World! I don't know how many times we heard, "Look at this!!"

We made our way to the computer section. He actually did not end up picking out a laptop (probably a wise thing, given that he's 12 and laptops are more fragile.) Instead, he got a really cool Gateway All-In-One desktop (the computer is in the monitor itself...so no big clunky CPU unit--helpful for their small apartment). And, it is one of the new "touch screen" varieties, with all sorts of cool features, including a wireless mouse and keyboard. He was punch-drunk with happiness! We had enough money to get a basic HP printer as well.

Our salesperson took us to a quiet area of the store so that we could unbox the computer, set it up, attach the printer and try it all out and review all the features. I had a flashdrive with photos from his oldest sister's wedding (a colorful Somali wedding celebration), which we downloaded. When we hit, "print" and a beautiful wedding photo came out, Abdullahi declared, "SWEEEEEET!" (Doesn't take a 12 year old very long to learn the adolescent vernacular.)

After the purchase, we took them all back to their apartment to set it back up. It is a very large family with lots of small kids. They all gathered around as Scott set it up. They have never seen anything quite like it. You would have thought a space ship had landed, the way they hovered around it with curiosity and delight.

For us, it just felt sooooo good to be with him in an environment that is at the opposite end of the continuum from the hospital (he had just been in for 4 days last week--high dose methoexate). To see him in such delight meant more to us than we could say.

I know you understand all of that, and that is why you so graciously do what you do. All we can do is say, "thank you"!! It's an amazing gift--tangibly and emotionally--for each child who is a recipient. But especially for this 12 year old African boy born and raised in a refugee camp!

We did get some great photos. We will down load some and forward them to you.

Again, many, many thanks,

Blessings to you,

Laurie and Scott Pederson

PS - Thank you, too, for all that Cal's Angels have contributed to the playroom on 4 West at Childrens. Abdullahi and his siblings have spent hours using it all during those long hospital stays. You know how hard it is to get the time to pass and to keep a kid's mind off the chemo, etc. We are grateful for it.

Patrick Freund Wish

Jessica Kirk — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 04:03:42 GMT

Patrick Freund is an energetic teen who has gone through two stem cell transplants - one from his brother and one from his sister. His wish was for a new computer so when the item he wanted went beyond our budgeted amount, our friends at the South Elgin Best Buy store came through for us again. You will probably recognize Patrick here soon as he is the next poster child for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society - his mug will be plastered all across town, on busses and TV.

Danny's Wish

Jessica Kirk — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 03:36:51 GMT

When your child is diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, it doesn't get much worse than that. It's like the world comes to a quick stop, but only for you. There's still other responsibilities the parents must take care of, such as bills and work, while now juggling long in-patient stays, chemo treatments and tests.

Our son's aggressive treatment lasted 5 months including 5 rounds of chemo and 9 hospitalizations that covered 40% of those 5 months. Emotionally, it drains almost all that you have, but you hold onto HOPE, FAITH, and the LOVE you have for your child. Cal's All-Star Angels understands, unfortunately, what families are going through and provides support to them. It's organizations like Cal'sAngel's, and all the wonderful, support people you meet during this difficult time such as the wonderful doctors, nurses, social worker and Chaplain and your loving family and wonderful friends who get you through it. We are so grateful to Cal's All-Star Angels for what they did for us. Danny was so sick that many times he didn't feel like playing and because of his immune system being literally zero at times, we couldn't take him out in public or anywhere for 6 months.

Now, in remission, it's all about FUN. We look forward to Danny's 3rd birthday in May as his diagnosis came 3 days before his 2nd birthday and everything had to be canceled. There's the swim lessons and flight to Denver to see his Great Grandmother that we're already booked, but had to be canceled, but we're rescheduling this year. Swimming in Uncle Bob's in-ground pool that Danny loved two years ago, but couldn't enjoy not even once last year. We call the Summer of 2009, the summer that wasn't as Danny was hospitalized during Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day and many other days last summer.

Now we love the word FUN even more and everyday Danny enjoys playing with the kitchen, easel and tent with tunnel that Cal's All-Star Angel's provided for him. Our living room/dining room is now Danny's Playroom with a Sofa, but we don't care. We love it.

Thank you, Cal's All-Star Angels for what you did for us and continue to do for others in need.

Take care and thank you!

Debbie Carpenter

Will's Wish

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:02:09 GMT

Will Kelley was diagnosed with T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on June 17, 2009. He is a pretty typical 16 year old boy who loves soccer, lacrosse, hanging with friends and eating his parents out of house and home. All of this and much more was taken out of his control this summer after his diagnosis. We heard about Cal's Angels from our social worker, Kate and our home health nurse, Joanna and knew that they could perhaps brighten his summer a bit. We contacted them and I knew from the first phone call that this was a family I would grow to love.

So off we headed with both families for a fun, yet chaotic at times, adventure at Best Buy while 14 of us shopped for a lap top for Will and gift cards for Will's siblings - Megan, Drew and Mitchell.

The laptop has provided Will with some much needed encouragement and support from friends via email, Face book and Caring Bridge and will be huge help as school begins and the possibility of many days home in bed doing homework.

Will says he is "grateful for the laptop because it gives me a way to interact with others without leaving my house." I think our entire family is mostly grateful for the chance to meet the Sutter family and experience their passion to keep Cal's legacy going. We are blessed to journey with you and ever grateful for your generous spirit. We think of you all so often and simply can't thank you enough.”

--Joan, John and Will Kelley
--Meg, Drew and Mitch too!

Cal’s Angels gives a warm, heartfelt THANK YOU to Schaumburg Best Buy’s Customer Solutions Manager Wesley Brazen and Will’s Personal Best Buy Laptop Expert Tim.

Arnold's Wish

Tom Sutter — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 22:37:34 GMT

In July, 9 year old Arnold made a wish for a laptop and all the accessories. Our friends at the Best Buy store in South Elgin were more than eager to help us grant his wish with special thanks to Product Process Manager Dave Guarino for being Arnold's personal laptop expert.

With the special discounting made available to Cal's Angels, Arnold now has all the hardware and software he needs to help keep his mind occupied with the fun things in life while fighting the ill effects of chemotherapy.

We also want to thank South Elgin Best Buy's GM John Chidley and Customer Experience Manager Adam Skwarlo for always making sure Cal's Angels is able to maximize each and every wish by providing us with the best possible pricing on all items purchased for our recipients in their store.

Abigail's Wish

Tom Sutter — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 22:36:43 GMT

Our family got in touch with Cal's Angels through a fellow cancer mom (thanks Claudia!). I thought for a while about what Abigail would like. She's only 2 so it was really hard. A trip? A tricycle? AHA! A kitchen! Abigail's favorite toy at the hospital is the kitchen. At the developmental playgroup, she plays with the toy food.

One of her favorite toys at home is an ice cream set that she got at the hospital one day. It’s amazing how a kid that won't eat is so infatuated with food! Today, Stacey Sutter, with her two babies in tow, hauled over the most awesome, amazing kitchen from Pottery Barn ever. We kept it in the boxes all morning and unpacked it while she napped. In the afternoon, we unveiled her surprise! She thought it was pretty cool.

The kitchen came with a set of pots and pans. Sarah had already sent her a birthday present of play cookies which were waiting for Abigail in the oven. Abigail pretended to take cookies out of the oven, wisk fake ice cubes in the pan and fill up her measuring cup at the sink. For me, this kitchen is a lifesaver. I'm hoping it means she'll have something to do while I make dinner and do dishes! I'm also hoping it gets her more into enjoying food and EATING! This kitchen is pretty nice...I'm talking save it to hand down to her children nice. Thanks Cal’s Angels!

A Wii Little Wish

Tom Sutter — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 22:38:19 GMT

We wanted to take some time to thank Cal’s All-Star Angels Foundation. In April of 2008, our 2 year old daughter, Brooke, was diagnosed with Leukemia. Even with great insurance and medical care, there are still financial and emotional costs that bring challenges to our family.

Cal’s has intervened several times to help. Over the past several months, Cal’s has encouraged our family with financial support, gifts that have allowed us to spend time as a family and events that have allowed us to share our daughters story and be part of a community committed to fighting childhood cancer.

One of the biggest challenges to any cancer family is the sudden rise in medical related costs. These costs include the obvious medical expenses themselves as well as expenses for repeated trips to the hospital and the lodging and meal costs that accompany those trips. This puts a strain on a families’ ability to pay even the normal bills. Cal’s Foundation generously paid our car insurance bill for six months, taking an enormous pressure off of our finances.

Treating childhood cancer also puts a tremendous strain on family dynamics. With two kids, it is hard for the child without cancer to feel included. Even the closest family can feel fractured and disjointed when appointments and hospital stays are a routine part of life. Cal’s Foundation provided a great gift for us in the form of a Nintendo Wii gaming system. The Wii gives us an opportunity to get together as a family daily, be active and laugh with each other. Even on days when our daughter has to be isolated, we can still have fun playing the Wii as a family.

Finally, Cal’s Foundation has been a great encouragement to us through events that they organize or help sponsor. During a particularly tough time, we were able to participate in the first Cal’s All-Star Angel Foundation 5K. The opportunity to run in the 5K, and for the kids to run in their own races, even one honoring Brooke, gave us a chance to fight back against the cancer that has attacked our family. Being able to join and be honored by Cal’s with other cancer families that day was a great encouragement to all of us. This is just an example of the events in which Cal’s has been a part of that we were able to participate in.

Throughout this journey we have been on fighting cancer, we can look back and see several times where Cal’s All-Star Angel Foundation has stepped in to walk alongside us providing much support and encouragement when we needed it the most. Thank you Cal’s!

Gratefully,
Rick, Tanya, Jacob and Brooke Roberts

Brett's Weber Wish

Tom Sutter — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 22:41:26 GMT

Brett's Wish

Brett Weber received his wish late last year - a laptop computer and all the accessories. This 12 year old knows how important it is to keep up with school work and communicate with friends while fighting the ill effects of chemotherapy. Cal’s Angels maxed out his wish amount of $750 and our friends at Best Buy granted the remaining portion of the price tag so that Brett could get the exact laptop he wanted along with a mouse, security, games and a backpack to carry it all. His sisters also received $50 each to buy special gifts.

Thank you to Best Buy’s John Chidley, Adam Skwarlo and Jason Marshall, the personal shopper, for making a wish come true for Brett. Your attention to him and his needs was extraordinary. We also thank you for your continuous support in choosing appropriate items for our wish recipients and your special treatment for all of Cal’s Angels.

December 2008 Holiday Toy Drive

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:10:03 GMT

December 2008 Holiday Toy Drive

The Holiday Toy Drive was a huge success with hundreds of board and card games, crafts, a PS3 system, DVD's and Wii, PS2, PS3 and Xbox 360 games donated with the help of our friends...

- It’s A Girl Thing, Geneva
- Gymboree Play & Music, Geneva
- Fox Valley Women and Children’s Health Partners, St. Charles
- Bill Cho’s Tae Kwon Do Center, St. Charles
- X-Sport Fitness, St. Charles

The PS3 system will be donated to the playroom on the oncology floor at Children’s Memorial while the DVD’s, Wii, Xbox, PS2 and PS3 games will be divided between the playroom, special care units and mobile game systems utilized by families in patient rooms. The rest of the games, crafts and toys will be distributed to the inpatients and their siblings at the hospital on each of three separate visits we will be making during December, January and February – the first trip occurred on December 30th and it was awesome watching the faces of the children light up as they came out of their hospital room to choose whatever they wanted from a cart filled with toys we were pushing around the floor.

Special thanks to Bill Granato and Tanya Sangiacomo from Harleysville Insurance Group, Taksina Davis, Ed & Gina Robinson and Bill Cho’s for going above and beyond any expectations.

October 2008 Children’s Memorial Hospital

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:08:10 GMT

October 2008 Children’s Memorial Hospital
Patients of all ages have enjoyed the movies, video games and art supplies that were delivered to Children’s Memorial Hospital! (Inpatient Unit, Outpatient Clinic, Day Hospital, Therapeutic Apheresis Center, Ambulatory Stem Cell Unit) A little goes a long way in making a difference… one child was amazed that she was presented with a pack of crayons that contained 64 different color choices, along with markers that were actually scented! The video games and movies were an instant hit, especially with our teen population! The Wii games are a big motivator in drawing our teens down to the activity room, where the interactions become much more than just video game competition- it becomes about socializing with another peer who can truly say "I understand what you’re going through."

October 2008 Financial Assistance

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 17:56:54 GMT

October 2008 Financial Assistance
Michelle, mother of Matthew who was diagnosed with ALL 6 months ago, is a single parent. She wrote: “I was quickly overwhelmed with the financial impact his illness was having on our lives. I was falling behind on several of my monthly bills and didn’t know where to turn. Cal’s Angels was the first organization to come forward and offer us some financial assistance. Thanks to you, I was able to make my mortgage payment. You truly are “Angels” to all of us. Thank you so much for caring!”

September 2008 Wish Connected

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:09:59 GMT

September 2008 Wish Connected
Amanda, age 14, loves the Laptop that Cal's All-Star Angel Foundation helped to provide with a $750 Dell Gift Card. It's really a wonderful machine and she simply delights in having it. She uses it for every purpose it is intended - 7th grade book reports, web research and "friend business", email correspondence, photos and graphics, and of course, Facebook, YouTube, internet games and DVD movies.

August, 2008 Home Run Wish

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:11:44 GMT

August, 2008 Home Run Wish
Russell Witek of Geneva, IL received his Cal’s Angels wish. He wanted to visit Wrigley Field for a Cubs game. Russell, his parents Brian and Karen, his brother and his youth pastor were able to be on the field before the game where Russell was presented with a signed Kerry Wood baseball. They enjoyed the game together from fantastic lower deck seats near third base. Russell’s mother said, “The day was complete with a grand slam home run on the field. We high fived the many fans around us.” What a great way to spend the day!

July 2008 Grandparents raising a child with cancer

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 17:59:20 GMT

July 2008 Grandparents raising a child with cancer
The Foundation has paid at a portion of a family’s mortgage this past month. A three year old fighting leukemia who has been legally adopted by his grandparents along with his 1 year old brother because mom and dad have been incarcerated. Grandma recently had a heart attack and a quadruple bypass so she is currently unable to work. This is a letter from the family.

"Recently my wife had a heart attack and as a result was unable to work. The loss of her income put a financial strain on our family who is raising a grandchild with cancer. We were happy to learn that through your foundation we were able to receive some funds that would help with our problems. Within days, we had a check sent to our landlord to help pay our rent. Thank you Cal’s Angels! You helped make a difficult situation such easier." Bill & Pam

July 2008 University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:12:53 GMT

July 2008 University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital
Cal’s All-Star Angel Foundation made a special delivery to the University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital. Cal's favorite nurse, Rich, was on duty when the Sutter family arrived with the items. It was a special moment for them to see him again. University of Minnesota Medical Center Children’s Hospital where Cal was a patient for over 3 months in 2006, every room on the Pediatric Oncology and Stem Cell Transplant floor have a Wii system but the outpatient clinic does not. Apparently, the kids were asking the social workers if they could be admitted as an inpatient again so that they could play the Wii games. The Foundation purchased a system and several games and shipped them up to the clinic so that the kids do not have to go without their Wii after they are released but still have to go to the outpatient clinic every day.

Children’s Memorial Hospital

Tom Sutter — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 20:37:41 GMT

Children’s Memorial Hospital
While in remission after his battle with leukemia, Russell developed a brain tumor and is now being treated as an outpatient at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Before we were even able to grant his own wish, he sent us an e-mail through his mom letting us know that the Wii games they have in the playroom at the hospital are pretty lame and that if we wanted to create a memorable Wii experience for the kids on the Oncology floor, there are six particular games to purchase, including the new Mario Kart Wii game. We went over to the local Best Buy store in South Elgin with his e-mail and purchased all six plus rechargeable battery controllers. The games and controllers were delivered the next day making a lot of kids’ days much brighter and saving the hospital a lot of money on batteries. We also have an extra Wii System for the hospital once they can reconfigure space for a second system.

Travel Expenses

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:00:46 GMT

Travel Expenses
A lower income family has to travel several times a week from Carpentersville to Children’s Memorial in Chicago – the amount of money they spend on gas is making it difficult to cover the cost of other items such as utilities and clothing. Cal’s All-Star Angel Foundation purchased $750 in gas gift cards for their use as needed.

Car and Utility Payments

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:00:25 GMT

Car and Utility Payments
We made a car payment for a family who was falling behind in their bills and for another we are looking to cover their Nicor bill which was past due over $700. The financial stress was clearly event in both families whose primary focus is now their children battling cancer.

June 2008 A Family in Need

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:00:05 GMT

June 2008 A Family in Need
During the process of granting a wish for a 10 year old girl with leukemia she suddenly passed away leaving her family devastated and distraught. Rather than having them worry about working to pay their $500 monthly rent, the Foundation contacted their landlord and covered their rent for May and purchased a $250 Target Gift Card so that they could buy food and household items for their other two children.

May 2008 Scholarship Winners

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:01:05 GMT

May 2008 Scholarship Winners
Cal’s Angels College Scholarship Program (CACSP) just announced our first scholarship winners. The main goal is to award the scholarships to young men who exemplify the same qualities as Cal did during his short lifetime.

March 2008 Sluggers Wish

Tom Sutter — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 18:02:55 GMT

March 2008 Sluggers Wish
Yeferson Sarmiento, 12, has battled Leukemia for 5 years. His wish was to take his siblings and parents to Great America because he had never been there. He was not able to go due to weather so we hope to finish his wish some time soon. They also received a $100 gift card to Walgreens for meds and a $125 Jewel card to help the family with groceries.