The James W. Ellis Scholarship was established in October 1997, by Anita M. Ellis, to honor the memory of her father, James W. Ellis, who died from cancer. This is an endowed scholarship awarded to one or more returning Hofstra University student (s) who has cancer or is in cancer remission. Additionally, this scholarship also provides for students who have a parent that has cancer or who has died from this tragic disease. It is the intent of this scholarship to ease one or more of the burdens of the student. 100% of the more than $121,000.00 raised for scholarship is given to the students. Since 1997, over 110 college students have benefited from this scholarship. Check out this article printed in the newspaper.

The Charity Breakfasts

There have been almost a dozen charity breakfasts put on by Anita Ellis through Creation Entertainment at the Xena & Sci Fi Conventions across the nation. The very first one was in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, August of 1999. The first celebrities to donate their time were Bruce Campbell, Claire Stansfield, Robert Trevor and Jacqueline Kim. From there the breakfasts grew in popularity and Anita Ellis was known by every Xena fan! The concept of her breakfast also evolved and she started to have not only the celebrities, but some of her students also make appearances and speak about how the scholarship has helped them. She has created themes for the breakfast and made it a memorable event for the guests and the fans.

DONATION$!

Of course there are many stars who have donated time to the Ellis Foundation, but one in particular stands out because of her complete endorsement of this charity. HUDSON LEICK! Not only has Hudson donated her time for the breakfasts, but she has donated outfits to auction for the charity and has raised thousands!! Hudson cares deeply for Anita and her charity and it's nice to see that kind of devotion!! THANKS Hudson. Hudson donated her Valley Forge dress and raised $500. Creation matched that $500 for a total of $1000.

One of the biggest donations to the James Ellis Foundation was from Creation itself. With an amazing gesture of good will, Creation auctioned off an original chakram prop used on Xena: Warrior Princess on eBay. They raised $14,100 Dollars It's amazing the power of fandom! Read the Thank You letter from Creation.

May 2001 Pasadena Xena: Warrior Princess Convention T-shirt sale to benefit The Starship Children's Hospital's Safe and Sound Appeal in New Zealand and the James W. Ellis Foundation at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. This is a fan-run charity drive. Not only have the big names like Hudson and Creation helped raise money for the James Ellis Foundation, but many fans as well. One in particular, Dawn, or you may know her as Lt. Paws. She sold 500 t-shirts for Charity, not to mention raising money other ways like getting a prototype t-shirt signed by Gregory Lee, Hudson Leick, Karl Urban and Willa O'Neill and then auctioning it off at the New York Convention!! She also is creating a Xena Trivia Crossword to be sold for $1 a piece to also give to charity!! Wow, great job Dawn!