I may only be eight years old but people still call me a “Chef”. I started cooking when I was six, which was when I relapsed with leukemia. I got into cooking from watching the Food Network. That’s how this whole thing got started; I wanted to be a Chef on the Food Network. In December of 2007, to make that dream of mine come true my Mom and Dad organized our first fundraiser called “Cooking up Dreams” in which I was the guest “Chef”. We invited everyone we knew, it was amazing… almost everyone came! We had over three hundred people there, the restaurant was overflowing! There was even a waiting list to get in! It was so much fun. I made the menu with all of my favorite foods and then I got to cook it with the real chefs at the restaurant!

The television news stations were there, even CNN, the L.A. Times and local papers too. It was a big success. We raised over $36,000 that year; we donated all the money to childhood leukemia research. Even though I was right in the middle of my leukemia treatment and I didn’t have any hair it was one of the most fun days of my life!

Another year went by, even though I was still under treatment, I was able to return to school and play with my friends again. I still loved to cook, so my family and I organized another “Cooking up Dreams” event. Once again, it was a huge success! We established a permanent endowment in my name at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach; this is the hospital where I have received all of my leukemia treatments. All together, so far we’ve raised about $60,000!

Since December of 2008, when we held our last “Cooking up Dreams” event, I’ve been a guest on The Tonight Show and the Bonnie Hunt Show. My Mom and I are almost finished writing my first cookbook, its called, “Twist it up”, that’s my catch phrase. It means to take a dish and change it around to make it your own. That’s what I like to do!

I finished my leukemia treatment in January, 2009.  I am now in complete remission. I hope my story will inspire other kids that are going through tough times to stay positive and believe in yourself. Remember, 99 per cent of everything we do depends on us believing we can! If you believe in your dream so will everyone else…