Contestant Data
Name: Denise Diggan
Hometown: Williamsport, PA

My name is Denise. I own a stained glass business called Glassical Expressions, which is located in North Central Pennsylvania. I had my first experiences with stained glass in high school close to 20 years ago. I rekindled my love of glass in 1996 with a window I donated as an auction item for non-profit organization, the Michael Bolton Foundation which raises funds for woman and children at risk. In the end, the 1996 window was kept on display at the foundation office and two more followed (and were successfully auctioned) in 1997 and 1998. The window from 1998 is the one I'm pictured with.

In 1996, during the construction of the first window I donated to the foundation, I found lumps that my doctor presumed could be cancerous. Having a family overrun with cancer, I decided to do something positive with my talents and started a fundraising group called Angels of Hope. We make and sell stained glass angels to raise funds to further cancer research. You can read more about Angels of Hope at http://members.aol.com/Asheim/index.html.

In the end I found I was free of cancer but I continue to do a variety of fundraising events to support this important research. Angels of Hope has raised over $10,000 since 1996.

Personally, I am a wife and mother of a teenage son and daughter, who both love stained glass. I'm also the mother of a nine month-old Weimeraner puppy and an 11 year old German Shepherd.

To my fellow contestants..........this sounds like great fun! I wish everyone the best!!