"Chef" Jack Witherspoon
Born April 20, 2000, John “Jack” Hansen Witherspoon lives in Southern California with his parents and his younger brother.

Although Jack was born a healthy child, at the age of two he was diagnosed with a type of leukemia called Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL), commonly known as “childhood leukemia.” Most people who get ALL are between two and eight years of age.

He immediately began a three year, three month course of treatment consisting of a combination of chemotherapy and a steroid called Decadron. Jack did not have the typical experiences a toddler would have, but his spirit and demeanor were happy and unaffected by his circumstances. He finished treatment when he was five years old.

Jack had finished kindergarten and was in his first few weeks of first grade when, almost exactly one year after treatment ended, he relapsed. Jack began another course of treatment that was many times stronger than the first and required many hospital stays – a protocol that lasted two years and four months.

Due to the intensity of the treatment, Jack was taken out of school, and play-dates with friends ceased to reduce risk of infection. During one of Jack’s eleven hospital stays, he was channel surfing and came upon the Food Network. He would watch show after show after show. It wasn’t long before Jack knew that someday he wanted to be a chef.

Because of Jack’s love of cooking and deep desire to be a chef, his family organized a fundraiser called, “Cooking up Dreams,” where Jack was the guest chef and wrote the menu, which included all of his favorite foods. All net proceeds were donated to the Jonathan Jaques Children’s Cancer Center at Miller Children’s Hospital in Long Beach, where Jack received all of his treatment. To date, Jack has raised more than $75,000 for leukemia research, and partnered with Beckstrand Cancer Foundation to further raise awareness for the unique needs of pediatric cancer patients and their families – focusing on improving quality of life by providing patient advocacy and direct financial assistance for day-to-day basic needs.

Jack continued on with his treatment and was able to return to school, resuming his normal activities. He never lost his interest in cooking. Jack’s story has been told by Channel 2 News, CNN and the Los Angeles Times. He has cooked with Jay Leno on The Tonight Show and as a guest on the Bonnie Hunt Show. He is completing his first cookbook with his Mom, entitled “Twist It Up.”

Now age 9, Jack will start fourth grade in the fall. He plays Little League Baseball and is a red belt in Taekwondo. Jack is also a good swimmer and loves to surf with his dad. His leukemia treatment ended in January 2009. He is now in complete remission.