Over the past month, the Lansdale Love blog has learned of many community activities that are born out of compassion. The latest comes this up-coming weekend - the Upper Gwynedd Fire Department  will be hosting a hoagie sale on Saturday, February 9, to benefit Matthew Knoebel and his family, who were featured on this blog a few weeks ago when they sponsored a "Blood and Platelet Drive" at Corpus Christi.

Matthew Knoebel is a 13-year-old of Lansdale who is battling Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Diagnosed in October, Matthew has spent much of that time at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. His mom, Christina Simpson, told me at the blood drive that she sleeps at CHOP most nights snuggled up next to Matthew to keep him company during his long nights in the hospital. Matthew is now in need a bone marrow transplant. Upper Gwynedd Fire Department plans to donate the money raised from the hoagie sale to assist the family with medical bills and other day-to-day needs.

For the hoagie drive, each hoagie is $5 and the options are Italian, Turkey and Ham. All hoagies are made dry with condiments served on the side. The fire department asks that you place your orders by FRIDAY, February 8, by phone or fax.

Upper Gwynedd Fire Department
660 Garfield Ave.,
(located between 2nd and 3rd streets)
Upper Gwynedd, Pa.
phone: 215-699-5454
fax: 214-661-1570.

You can pick your hoagies up beginning at 10 a.m. They even have a drive through option if you don't want to get out of your car in this cold weather!

If there's one thing I've learned through running this blog, it's that the heartache of even just one community family does not go unnoticed!