FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Lou Chiera
954-480-8809, ext. 21
CHIERA FOUNDATION FUNDRAISER NETS $250,000
TO SEND KIDS BATTLING CANCER TO CAMP
The annual fundraising event staged by the Chiera Family Foundation to raise money to help kids and young adults battling cancer was a resounding success. Held this past April 26-27th, the foundation netted more than $250,000 to send approximately 150 kids to NICK’s CAMP, a five-day sleep away experience at Camp Boggy Creek in Eustis, Florida.
The annual dinner auction and golf tournament, with a New York “State of Mind” theme, was the signature event of an ongoing 23-year initiative that has raised more than $3 million, sent several thousand kids to summer camp and dozens more to college.
The Chiera Family Foundation was formed 22 years ago as a tribute to a father who passed away from cancer.
“ When people attend our dinner and auction, it is a life changing experience,” said Lou Chiera, the Foundation’s President. “They actually get to meet the kids that our foundation will send to camp and meet the college students who we are sending to college. Seeing where their money goes and meeting the children who directly benefit from our fundraising is something they never forget.
“ We know that our Dad would be so proud to see his name associated with such a wonderful cause. Seeing some of the kids we originally sent to camp get better and now go to college on our scholarships is simply amazing. One of our college graduates ended up using additional scholarship money for going to medical school at The University of Miami. She is now an Oncologist in New York City helping people battling with the same cancer she once had.”
N.I.C.K.’s stands for Nothing is Impossible for Cancer Kids. Lou Chiera’s father, Nicholas Chiera, was commissioner of Recreation and Parks in White Plains, N.Y. The concept of sending young cancer patients to camp was born as a joint tribute to his commitment to helping kids through recreation programs and to the battle he fought with cancer.
Boggy Creek was built in 1996 at a cost of $23 million by actor/philanthropist Paul Newman and General H. Norman Schwarzkopf to create a free, safe and medically-sound camp environment that enriches the lives of children with serious illnesses and their families. Since opening, over 62,000 seriously ill children and family members have had the opportunity to attend camp for free.
The camp is located on more than 250 acres of land just north of Orlando and enables the kids to forget about their disease for a few days as they swim, go horseback riding, and partake in archery, arts and crafts, theater, fishing and boating and miniature golf.
Many families are financially devastated when faced with the high cost of cancer treatments. The N.I.C.K.’s scholarship program allows young cancer survivors a chance to earn a degree and achieve their dreams by awarding scholarships in amounts ranging from $500 to $2,500 per year. Some of the same students who went to camp and beat cancer are now social workers, graphic artists and even Doctors and Oncologists.
The N.I.C.K’s Golf initiative, a partnership with Joe DiMaggio’s Children’s Hospital and The First Tee of Broward County, enables 12 cancer patients and some of their siblings to complete a 9-week program which teaches them golf as well as life lessons about honesty, integrity, nutrition, exercise and other important life lessons.
All proceeds from the Dinner/Auction and Golf Tournament are benefitting all three N.I.C.K.’s Programs.
To inquire about additional sponsorship opportunities or to get involved with The Chiera Family Foundation, visit the website at www.chierafamilyfoundation.org or call 954-480-8809, ext. 21.
