(This is Zoey and Gabriel. Gabriel is currantly undergoing treatment at CHLA for leukemia. Are they not just darling? Zoey might be in love. Just saying.)
Well, that isn't exactly true. I still have a few weeks of training and pushing of my body to do. My race isn't until the 20th of October and I told myself from the very beginning that I was going to train properly this time. Not do as I have been known to do in the past and give myself a whopping 3-4 weeks before I try and pull off 13.1. I am not out to achieve a personal record or anything, only to finish and to know I did the very best I could. I think this year I will be able to say that.
This past weekend I did my longest training miles, 12. With hills because hello, SF has hills. Lots of them. I felt good. Fairly confident that another 1.1 was doable. Confident enough that I participated in a 10k the next day. But not any 10k, a 10K that benefited a organization called Shred Kids Cancer. The non profit was started by a young boy who was watching his friends brother undergo treatment for cancer and he decided he wanted to do his part to help and thus, Shred Kids Cancer was born. Over 1000,000 dollars raised to date and yesterday, last I heard, they had raised 17,000 at the event. How incredible is that?
(This is Zoey and Gabriel. Gabriel is currantly undergoing treatment at CHLA for leukemia. Are they not just darling? Zoey might be in love. Just saying.)
Proves once again, that each of us can make a difference. And I suppose that is why I chose to run in the Nike Woman's Marathon again. A small gesture that has the possibility of translating to great things. And for me, it isn't always about my daughter and her diagnosis of leukemia, or the other children we have loved and lost to this blood cancer, for me it dates back 14 years ago when I was honored and privileged to be part of the life and death of a brave woman, a fellow mother, who fought tooth and nail to be here but this disease, won. And that is not right. And that is not fair. And then 7 years later, we lost an incredible man in our church community. A man that I was very close to. Who was another father figure in my life that was always readily available to talk to me and support me and who worried about my well being, especially while I was pregnant with Zoey. And when she was born, he called many times and rallied my broken spirit and spoke words of encouragement and love, all the while in the last stages of his own battle with leukemia. I told him to hang on and he had more to do. One od which was baptizing Zoey, but that day never came. Leukemia saw to that.
And this year, I run of course in honor of my little love Zoey. I run in honor and memory of my CHLA 4 East little fighters. I run for all the children that we have met through our blog. Connected by a life changing diagnosis of leukemia. I run in memory of Pat and John. Who deserved more time with their spouses and children and their grandchildren. Some they never got the chance to meet. And this year, my run is specifically honoring a fellow mom who is on her second fight against lymphoma. A mom who actually doesn't know that her face and the faces of her young two boys are who I see many times on my runs and who are the constant reminders of why we raise money for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We raise money for the much needed research and that ever important funding for clinical trials so we can reduce the toxicity of these drugs that are developed, that often bring patients bodies to the brink. We raise money so that one day it may mean we reach cure.
I have one week until final funds are due to LLS. 7 days to raise 745.00 to reach my goal of 2,900.00. Possible? I think so. Especially with your help. Won't you please consider making a tax deductible donation today? I thank you in advance for your love and support. Without either, I would never be able to accomplish any of this.
Yep, I kinda have been. Seems like the marathon is sneaking up on me. Just in a little more than 2 months. Yikes. You would think with this being my 4th run in San Francisco, I would be better prepared. But yeah, not so much.
But have no fear, I am not concerned in the least. Whether it is from a running/training standpoint, or my fundraising, I can get things done. The thing is, I can only be accountable solely on the training part and thankfully, the running part I have been keeping up on. How? I have no idea. But when it comes to the raising of my funds, although I am also in the end responsible for that, I truly cannot do that part without the help of my family and friends.
I NEED all of your help to reach my goal. And it isn't "I", that really needs you. It's "them". The patients. The ones currently battling these blood cancers presently and for all the others that will come. And they will come.
*Approximately every 4 minutes one person in the United States is diagnosed with a blood cancer.
*Approximately every 10 minutes, someone in the US dies
from a blood cancer. This statistic represents nearly 150
people each day or more than six people every hour.
Staggering statistics. Sobering statistics. Over 4 years ago my child became one of the statistics. You never really believe it can happen to you, until it does. You are suddenly thrust into a world of uncertainty and fear. You come face to face with other families on the same journey and you dont feel as alone. Side by side, shoulder to shoulder you face forward. Watching your children fight a fight you could never have imagined you would bear witness to. Precious children, with their entire lives before them, battling a beast without a face.
And then, beyond all comprehension, you helplessly watch as children you have come to love, lose that fight. You watch helplessly as parents and families are forced to navigate this life without their children.
I have sat at the bedside of dying children. That has been an honor, as well as a privilege. But I never want to do that again. And I never, ever want mothers and fathers to do that which makes no sense. Follows no logic. Defies reason and leaves a wake of heartache. But the only conceivable way that can happen is for a cure to be found. And the only way for that to happen is to continue raising money for research and clinical trials that will enable that cure to come.
Please, please consider joining me in my efforts to reach cure. Please make your tax deductible donation to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society today. Together we can make a difference. Together we can reach cure.
Four years ago today, Zoey Grace was released from treatment and fittingly, today is National Cancer Survivor Day.
June 2, 2009 culminated 8 months of intense chemotherapy to rid her body, once and for all, from the leukemia that threatened to take her life. When Zoey was first diagnosed, the end seemed so very far from sight. The protocol set in place on day one looked terrifying and simply horrific. I just could not wrap my head around the fact that soon my precious 19 month old daughter would have toxins, poisons, for lack of a better word, streaming through her tiny body.
Eventually I came to some semblance of peace with the process and as each infusion began, we would refer to it as "liquid hope" and surrendered to the process as we tried to stay focused on the goal. Cure.
We relinquished control, control we actually never had to begin with, and we did what needed to be done. Hour after hour. Day after day. Month after month. All in the name of cure. And those months spent in the hospital, living on that floor, opened our eyes to a life we could never have imagine. Ever. A life filled with the deepest of sorrows and dwelling oddly and uncharacteristically beside that sorrow, were some of the greatest beauty I will ever experience in my life. The children and their forgiving and fighting spirits taught me what living was truly about.
Those same sorrow and blessings are why I am raising funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Trying to do just a little to honor all those that have crossed our paths over the last 4 years. Whether it has been people who we have gotten to know and have forged great friendships because of our common bonds or whether it is the faces, that perhaps I only passed once in the hallway of 4 East or in the clinic on check up days. These are whom I run for. Our fervent hope is that one day a diagnosis of a blood cancer will immediately translate to a cure. We should strive for no less.
We lost far too many of our friends on that floor. Children with their entire lives in front of them, cruelly taken from this world. Families left shattered and broken and forced to begin navigating this life without them. I am running in memory of those who never reached cure. The ones who should be here. The ones who touched my heart on 4E and become the wind at my feet. I run for Sol Merie and Sunudo and Leah and Kai and Christopher and Klein. And all those behind the doors, and inside rooms, that I never met, that never found their way home. It's not my muscles that will get me to that finish line but rather the souls and spirits of all those that go before me.
Our best buddy on the floor, Christopher. We miss him but his family misses him more.
Please join me as I run for a cure. Truly every little bit counts and I am grateful and humbled by every cent that helps me reach my goal.
So, it's been nearly 4 years since I decided to jump head first or rather feet first, into my first marathon. Zoey was just newly out of treatment and I thought what better way to give back then to raise funds for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Sounded easy enough. Boy, was I ever wrong.
I was emotionally and physically exhausted after spending nearly 8 months on the oncology floor at CHLA with Zoey and the last thing I should have been doing was training for a marathon. But I did and it was hard. Really hard. But I expected that. However, what I did not expect was the emotions attached to the experience. That joy and sadness that I carried with me on that run through San Francisco. The images of my daughters face and all of her friends and their precious faces, that propelled me forward at every turn and with every breath sucking hill. And wow, were there hills. I thought about all the kids I had met over the months and thought about one very special adult,another mom, Pat, who should be here in this world with their families but were inexplicably not. All because, we have no cure yet for these blood cancers. So simple but yet so completely complicated. Have we made great strides? Absolutely we have. But we need cure. We must get to cure.
4 years later and here we are. And there have been other new diagnoses of people we have come to know and love. There have relapses, a few times over for some, of those that we love. And with broken and shattered hearts, we have lost far too many of those we have loved. That little litany that I just wrote, has got to end. And that is why I have chosen to fundraise and run in the Nike Women's Marathon once again. This will be my 4th time on that course. My 4th time that my motivation is borne from a desire to see all blood cancers eradicated. For good.
Last year I believe that the Nike Women's Marathon was able to raise upwards of 18 million dollars for LLS. Isn't that incredible? This year another 25,000 or so runners will strive to surpass that amount. I intend to do my part. Will you please consider helping me? No amount is too little. And all amounts are greatly and most humbly appreciate.
I will thank you in advance from my little warrior girl, who in a few weeks, June 2nd to be exact, will hit 4 years since she was released from treatment. We are so grateful to reach that milestone. So blessed to be at this juncture. We move forward each day knowing how tremendously lucky we are, Zoey is, that she remains in remission. We want everyone who is diagnosed to reach this milestone. And one day, as we hope, to be able to confidently speak the word ... CURED.
Until next time,
Heather
Teams are made up of individuals. Without them, there is no team.
Welcome to my Team In Training home page.
I have a mission-to help find cures and more effective treatments for blood cancers. To accomplish that mission, I’m participating in a sports endurance event as a member of The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) Team In Training. Like the other members of TNT, I will be raising funds to help find cures and better treatments for leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma. I’m improving the quality of my life by participating and with your support, I can help improve the quality of life for patients and their families as well.
Please make a donation in support of my efforts with Team In Training and help advance the research for cures.
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The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society® (LLS) is a global leader in the fight against cancer. The LLS mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world, provides free information and support services, and is the voice for all blood cancer patients seeking access to quality, affordable, coordinated care. The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is a 501(c)(3) organization, and all monetary donations are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by tax laws. Please check with your financial advisor if you have more questions.