Wow, what an emotional morning! As I was making last-minute preparations for the race tomorrow, I received notification that another amazing individual donated to LLS, pushing me OVER my fund-raising goal!! Together, we have raised $1,849 towards cancer research! I am totally blown away and humbled by the kindness of so many special people in my life. Thanks you for your generosity, prayers, and sweet notes of encouragement throughout this process. It has been one of the best experiences I've ever had....

My eyes have been opened to the heartache of blood cancers, and the resilience of so many brave survivors. I have seen first-hand that despite all the pain and heartache, there is SO much hope!

I can't wait to line up with 20,000 other individuals in Union Square tomorrow! I can't wait for the buzz and energy that the morning will bring (I hope I can sleep tonight)! ;)

GO TEAM!

It's almost the end of my training season for the Nike Women's half Marathon with Team in Training (TNT)! I can't believe the way the time has flown, and what an incredible experience this has been so far. It has opened my eyes to another world entirely. It definitely wasn't always easy, but it's been so life changing for me. When I joined TNT, I joined having very little knowledge of blood cancers. I had only known one person with a blood cancer, and another good friend who lost a brother to Leukemia. I didn't know a lot about blood cancers or the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Today, I know that there are nearly 958,000 Americans battling blood cancers. And I have had the privilege to meet some pretty amazing people who are fighting leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma right here in the Bay Area. I have also met parents who have children with leukemia, like my friend Amanda. These individuals came to our trainings, and meetings...they JOINED our team! Despite the sickness and heartache, they didn't just want to SIT BACK and do nothing! They wanted to be proactive in raising funds to fight blood cancers! And with good reason. The Leukemia and Lymphoma society is responsible for funding cutting edge research. Just last year, LLS invested $72 million in blood cancer research!! Thanks in part to that innovative research, survival rates have doubled, tripled and even quadrupled for blood cancer patients since the 1950's.

Research is the key to finding a cure, and funding for this research is so essential! I have set a personal goal to raise $1,800 toward this effort. So far, I have raised $1,125 and just have 8 days to raise the remainder!!

As I run the 13.1 mile half-marathon, you will be with me in spirit, and your sponsorship will inspire me to run stronger and faster to the finish line. A donation of one dollar per mile is suggested, but whatever you can do to contribute matters…it all adds up!

If possible, please click on the "donate now" button to donate to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society by September 29th.

On behalf of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, thank you very much for your support! I SO appreciate your encouragement and generosity!

I love this quote by Walt Disney, "It's kind of fun to do the impossible."

To me, this whole Team in Training endeavor seemed kind of impossible when I set out to do it. I have never been a runner, nor athletic. But here I am! I am training to run in the Nike Women's, and I am doing it! But more than the running, the fund-raising also seems very daunting to me. $1,800 seems like so much to raise...it seems kind of "impossible." Especially since we only have 2 months left until the race, and about 1 month left to fund-raise!

But I know that with God, nothing is impossible! And I am going to do this! And finish this race and this fund-raising goal...because indeed this whole "impossible" thing is pretty fun! I am having a blast with my Team in Training teammates!

July is almost over, and I have to say training this month was a bit hectic. Perhaps it's just life that was hectic. But after long working days as a social worker, (read: emotionally draining somedays), there were many evening runs that I just did NOT want to attend. It was real work getting myself to the running locations! In fact, just this morning, as I was driving on my way to meet the Team (and I was lost), I thought to myself, "Why am I doing this!? I am so tired and work hard during the week. I should definitely allow myself a day to sleep in and take it easy!"

...but then I remind myself that I am running because I CAN! I have been blessed with good health! And I know that even on my most emotional and exhausted days, I haven't experienced even an ounce of the tears, exhaustion, and heartache that our friends and honorees with blood cancers have experienced.

So I pray, and God gives me the strength to show up! And run with a purpose! And truly I have loved running with the Team! I love that there is purpose to this whole endeavor. I love that we are helping to find a cure for blood cancers...and LLS has some pretty amazing stats for what they have been able to do with the funds people have contributed.

This is from the LLS website:

When LLS was founded in 1949, a blood cancer diagnosis was almost always fatal. Thanks in part to innovative research funded by LLS, survival rates have doubled, tripled and even quadrupled for blood cancer patients.

I love that -- because where once there was no hope for a blood cancer disgnosis, there is now a shining hope! Remember Amanda and her son, Dawson, that I wrote about on the previous blog? I received news that he is HOME from the hospital!! It's been a long road for Dawson, but he is HOME! And has a second chance at life! Amazing that just 6 short decades ago, that hope and second chance might not have been possible if it weren't for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, and for people like you who give.

This week I have to make a big decision. I have to RECOMMIT to the Team in Training cause. This means, I am recommitting to raising my goal amount....$1,800! $530 of which has already been raised. And to prove it, I will be giving TNT my credit card number (in the event that others do not give, and so that I will still meet my goal requirement). Won't you join with me while I recommit to this goal, and give what you can? No amount is too small to be a part of giving hope and second chances!

Thank you all for reading, and supporting me in this goal! LOVE from the Bay Area!

This past Saturday, I had the pleasure of running with my TnT teammates in the most beautiful park along the Bay. I have really enjoyed discovering lots of beautiful parks and locations to run around here! Every Saturday we run in a different location, and I feel like each location is more beautiful than the last. I love exploring since I still feel new to the area...

But more than the scenery, I have also been able to meet some pretty amazing people on our team. This past Saturday, I met a really amazing mom named Amanda. She told me about her son, Dawson, who is only 6 months old. On January 27, 2011, Dawson was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. Dawson was only 6 weeks old at the time. Amanda told me of feeling confused (not realizing babies this young could even be diagnosed with leukemia). I didn't know that, either.

However, instead of letting herself slip into a deep depression, Amanda has joined with Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and is raising money to find a cure for the very disease that is afflicting her son. She showed me videos of Dawson's first giggles on her iphone, and asked if I wanted to come visit Dawson at Children's Hospital in Oakland. I was honored that she wanted to share her story with me, and let me walk (or literally run) :) alongside her during this difficult journey. She has given me permission to share her story.

I have met others with personal stories (we call them "Honorees") as well, and feel that a whole world has been opened before me. I was telling a friend the other day that I feel that God has really been teaching me to feel content wherever I am. For so long, I was so focused on being in Africa (and I still am in case you are wondering)...;) But, God has been revealing to me that even if Ruco and I are not serving in Africa, we can be loving and encouraging people wherever we happen to live. For now, it's the Bay Area. And as I'm discovering with my job working with people with developmental disabilities, and now with these "honorees" with Team in Training, there are people who are struggling everywhere -- right in front of me.

For me personally, I feel loved just when someone takes the time to listen and seem interested in my story. I hope to do this for the Team in Training Honorees when I continue to meet them. I do care. We care, and we are listening. We take interest in your story and your struggles, and I want to commit whole-heartedly to raising these funds for Dawson, Amanda, and others like them! Would you help me to encourage and love on Amanda, and the other Team in Training honorees? If so, please click on the link on my page and donate to Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. On race day, I will be running in honor of Dawson and will wear a bracelet with his name. If you donate and would like me to run in honor of someone you know as well, I would be more than happy to do so. Thanks so much for reading, and helping me to meet needs wherever I am! :)