Page 8 THE VILLADOM TIMES III • March 7, 2012 Our hat’s off to: Abundant Life Reformed Church of Wyckoff, Green Twig Nursery School, and Glen Rock WICS for their food donations. We also thank Girl Scout Troop76 from Wyckoff for their valentine donations. Again, we thank everyone who helped with the Hollywood Bash. It was a big success. Check our Facebook page or our website for pictures. Save these dates: The wonderful Darius Gibbs will host a Fashion Show benefit for us on Friday, March 23 at the Warwick Hotel in New York City. Visit www.emmanuelcancer.org for details. On May 14, ECF will be the recipient of Blue Moon Mexican Restaurant’s Community Day. Come to Boulder Run Shopping Center in Wyckoff to eat any time from 11:30 a.m. through 9 p.m. that day, and Blue Moon will donate 20 percent of your bill to our Family Assistance Fund. It’s not too early to think about hosting a spring tea for us. Please call us for details. We are thinking about some creative ways to hold some fun fundraisers for the spring. If you would like to help us, call our office at (201) 612-8118 and ask for Laura, or e-mail: laura@emmanuelcancer.org. Meet Dana: Dana is an extraordinary 11-year-old girl who has been fighting a battle against bone cancer since September 2010. Dana is not capable of walking on her own and has no choice but to use crutches to move around. Her treatment consists of painful chemotherapy sessions. Dana lives with her single mom and two siblings: seven-year-old Eric and five-year-old Kimberly. Due to low immunity, a side effect of her chemotherapy treatments, Dana has had many infections. In addition to the infections, a rash runs from the back of her head down to her neck. The rash constantly hurts, itches, and is debilitating her neck movement. Mom is struggling to support the family. She is being forced to quit work in order to be able to make multiple hospital visits during Dana’s treatment. The family has been referred to government resources, which provide some financial aid each month. Around the time Dana was diagnosed, Mom separated from the father of the younger siblings. Dana’s biological father is actively involved in her life and care, and supports Dana’s mother to the best of his ability, but is often unable to provide child support. As a result of all of this stress, Mom has dropped an alarming 45 pounds since her daughter’s diagnosis. Mom uses public transportation (a $12 round trip commute to and from the hospital), and is sad that she is unable to spend the night with her daughter. Mom cannot afford child care and needs to tend to her little ones when they return home from school. Dana’s siblings often cry at night because their big sister is not home with them and they miss her. Dana prefers to eat home-cooked meals. Despite the fact that healthy, nutritious produce is more costly, Mom cooks healthy, special dietary meals for the family. She even takes Dana’s meals to her when she has to stay all day or overnight for treatment. Dana loves Moshi Monsters, a popular children’s computer game. Dana wishes to purchase an online annual subscription for the computer game valued at $50 allowing her to purchase names and connect with virtual friends. She enjoys listening to music, especially Selena Gomez, Katie Perry, and Justin Bieber. Mom is heartbroken since she does not have the financial means to provide for her family and her daughter’s leisure activities. The kids are growing, as are their school uniforms and lunch expenses, which run $300 a month. Your support will help this very deserving family and bring a little peace of mind to a mother fighting for her daughter’s life. You can help in a variety of ways. Consider turning your next event into a fundraiser for ECF, and ask guests to bring checks or gift cards to be used by our families. Your efforts help us to help our families in many ways, including sending a caseworker to visit the families at home or in the hospital. This support for the kids, their siblings, and parents is crucial. Kids are welcome to help, too. Many have held sales or other events and contributed the proceeds to ECF. If your Boy Scout or Girl Scout Troop needs to earn badges, visit us in Midland Park. Scouts can get creative and have fun helping our families as they learn about philanthropy. ECF representatives are available to discuss our programs at your next fundraiser or event. Just give us a call for more information. Each month, we distribute about 140 bags of food to our families. You can help us fill our pantry. When you go grocery shopping and something nonperishable is on sale, please grab some extra items and drop them off at our outreach center. Our families appreciate your efforts. Staples such as sugar, flour, salt, cooking oil, detergent, pancake mix/syrup, and rice are always needed. ECF, which was named for a little boy named Emmanuel who lost his battle with cancer nearly 30 years ago, uses monetary contributions to cover the costs associated with providing free services to any New Jersey child who has cancer. Approximately 70 cents from every dollar goes toward direct care for our families. If your company has a charitable giving program, please let us know. If you have a few hours a week to spare, consider becoming a volunteer, or just stop by and meet with us, take a look at our pantry, and see what ECF is all about. We are currently looking for a volunteer to help us on Tuesdays from 2 to 4 p.m. or 2 to 5 p.m. Call us at (201) 612-8118 before you stop by. Please do not leave items at the center without checking with us first. Our storage space is limited. The Northern Regional Center is located at 174 Paterson Avenue, Midland Park, NJ 07432. Visit us on the web at www.emmanuelcancer.org. As always, thank you for helping the children and their families!