Make Valentine's Day special with these cards

Whether you're a fan of Valentine's Day or not, you should check out these cards from M.D. Anderson Children's Art Project.For more than 35 years, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center has been offering the art program to its pediatric patients, which then sells the artwork to raise money for their patients services. To date, the artwork has returned nearly $30 million to programs at M.D. Anderson to help patients and their families.From the website:

When the Children's Art Project began funding patient programs in the early 1970s, the focus was on providing cheer and comfort for young patients, most of whom did not survive their battles with cancer. With improved treatments, more young patients survive their disease and programs funded by the project have evolved to include college scholarships, educational programs and other opportunities that prepare pediatric patients for successful lives after cancer. In 2009, $1.25 million in Children's Art Project proceeds were given to fund the following patient programs: •Adolescent & Young Adult (AYA) Program •Camp A.O.K (Anderson's Older Kids) •Child Life and Adolescent Life Program•Creative Arts Program •In-Hospital Education Program •Annual Rehabilitation Ski Trip •Camp Star Trails for young patients and their siblings•College Scholarships for current & former patients•Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Family Alliance•Anderson Network Cancer Survivor Conference •Beauty/Barber Shop where services are provided for all patients •Evening/weekend activities for pediatric & adult patients Reading that long list makes me think my small card purchase is doing a lot of good!I'm usually able to find them in my local grocery store, but this year I ordered them through the M.D. Anderson website here.It makes Valentine's Day a little more special in our household, and we're excited about spreading the word about the Children's Art Project to all of my son's classmates and their families.We also have a feature on art and healing during and after cancer in an upcoming issue, so stay tuned!