Holiday Help

The Holiday Season is here. Many of us are looking forward to December 25 when we give or receive gifts. But for families of someone with Cancer, each day of survival is a gift. Our next two Spotlight stories (Thursday at 4:00 p.m. and Sunday at 8:00 a.m.) focus on two very different service organizations in Dallas-Fort Worth.

On December 13 & 16, we’ll tell you about Cancer Care Services of Fort Worth (CCS). As you may imagine, a Cancer diagnosis is devastating. What’s worse is that the costs of saving a life can financially ruin a family. CCS steps up to the plate by providing everything from assistance to exercise programs to counseling to entertainment.

Cancer treatment often means there’s no money for decorations, gifts or a big meal. So CCS teams up with different companies in Fort Worth to provide a shopping spree, holiday party and gifts. Our story will show you how it makes a difference for one family as well as the donors. By the way, they could still use your help. If you would like to contact CCS, go to http://www.cancercareservices.org/.

Our story on December 20 & 23 takes us to Plano and Dallas. You will meet some special artists and see their creative Christmas Cards. They are pediatric Cancer patients. We’ll profile a smart, funny nine year old boy in Plano who loves sharks, legos and videogames. He’s spent the last five years battling a form of bone cancer. The treatment has included surgeries, chemotherapy, baldness and nausea. But his story will inspire you, not sadden you. His creation is part of a box of Christmas cards available for sale right now!

The other half of our story is a 17 year old who is still undergoing treatment at Children’s Medical Center in Dallas. She is shy and doesn’t talk much. But her writing and drawings speak from her soul. This young woman describes what its like to fear, experience and walk away (or be carried away) from treatment. Somehow she turns the ordeal into hope by the light she gets from other pediatric cancer patients.

Both of their Christmas cards are detailed and colorful. The children designed them for the Children’s Cancer Fund of Dallas. The printing is donated so proceeds from the cards go directly to local research for pediatric cancer. You can see them for yourself and purchase them at http://www.ccfdallas.com/. The back of each card shows a picture and story of each young artist.

Please take time to view these stories, we promise it will be a gift just to hear their stories.

Ring The Bell

The holiday season is here! When you’re out picking up “some of your favorite things,” do you just briskly walk past the Salvation Army bell ringers?

We wanted to know the story of one of these bell ringers. This Thursday at 4:00 p.m. and Sunday at 8:00 a.m., we’ll introduce you to Leon Zecha. I don’t know what’s more striking about him… his bright blue eyes and white beard that makes him look like Santa or his easy manner of saying “Merry Christmas” and more to everyone who walks past him at his post or the fact that he now gives back to the organization that helped him.

One thing is for certain: his personality really brings in the money. He stands at one of the top collection stations in the city of Dallas. We’ll show you a little of the reason why.

And the next time you walk by the bellringers, you may want to stop, chat and give.

Sweet Dream

One of the highlights of being a “Spotlight” producer is meeting entreprenuers. They work so hard each day on making their dreams come true. A few years ago, I spoke to a group at the Fort Worth Business Assistance Center, where I met Susan Dequeant. She is the owner of Special Occasion Chocolates in Arlington. This week, Susan shared with us how she mass produces delicious chocolates in a small kitchen in Arlington. She makes specially shaped chocolates for many small businesses and events like office parties, weddings, media events and more. In less than an hour, she can transform four pounds of chocolate into bite sized delights.

As a chocolaholic, it was a lot of fun to watch (and I confess, taste) as the process come to life. But even more rewarding was hearing Susan talk about how she turned a childhood hobby into a successful business. She doesn’t plan to compete with Hersheys, she plans to keep her business small. Susan enjoys having a one-woman business with personally communicating with each client. But most of all, she loves making her dream come true day after day. You can see it in her eyes. And she has advice for you if you’re thinking of owning your own business, which you will see in our report.

And if you want to check out the Special Occasion Chocolates, her website is www.specialoccasionchocolates.com