Some of you may remember that I was a member of Team In Training last year. Due to injuries and illness, I unfortunately was not able to complete in the events I had signed up for. However, the best news is that I successfully raised $1526.00 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Thanks to everyone who donated last year!

I have joined Team In Training again and am once more asking for your help. I will keep you up to date on my progress here.

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. The Society has dedicated itself to being one of the top-rated voluntary health agencies in terms of dollars that directly fund our mission.
From the LLS website.

Other Ways You Can Help!!

Apparel for Runners!

You will find apparel for the running enthusiast. All profits from the sale of these items will go into my fundraising account.

make custom gifts at Zazzle

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2008 LLS Mission Video

2008 Team In Training Anniversary & History Video

January 22, 2008

My 35th Birthday Wish

Yep, I got the big 3-5 coming up next week. And I do have a request for my 35th... and no, I don't want chocolates. :-)

On January 20, 2008 I completed my first Half Marathon... that's 13.1 miles! Now my goal is to complete a Full Marathon... which, you got it, would be 26.2 miles!! So I've joined The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team In Training to not only train to run 26.2 miles in the Rock 'N Roll Marathon in June, but to help raise $975 to fight in the battle against Leukemia & Lymphoma and other blood cancers.

At the moment, I am feeling very 35 with that big 3-5 looming just ahead. So here's the deal: I'm asking all of you to make a tax-deductible donation of $35 to my team towards my goal of $975.

And don't worry. I know some of you may not have $35 to spare. In that case, how about $25, or $15, or $5 or whatever amount you choose. Every little bit helps.

And the top 10 reasons why you should sponsor me:

10. While you're sleeping in on June 1st, you're still helping cure blood cancers, but I have to get up at the crack of dawn, fight traffic, deal with 10,000 crazy runners, & make it to the start line by 6:30am.
9. While I'm at mile 13.1, with sore knees, and wondering how the heck I'm going to make it another 13.1 miles, you'll still be snuggled up in bed.... realizing just how much smarter you are than me.
8. You can transform my sneakers into money making machines as I raise $37.21/mile.
7. Your donation is tax deductible.
6. If you sponsor me than I have no excuse to crawl and will run the entire 26.2 miles.
5. If I do not raise $975 instead of getting to wear a t-shirt that says "Runner Chic" I have to wear one that says "Slacker Chic".
4. While I go through 896 oz. of Gator Aid, 43 Power Bars, 5 pairs of running shoes, 53 lbs of ice for my knees, 2 bottles of Aleve, all you need to do is make a donation.
3. You get to see me limp for 2 days following the marathon... (again, realizing how smart you are since all you had to do was donate a few bucks).
2. At least 75% of your donation goes directly towards research, patient services, education and all the other wonderful services that LLS provides blood cancer patients and their families.
1. Every 5 minutes, someone is diagnosed with a blood cancer. Here's your chance to help find a cure.

For more information and statistics regarding blood cancers, please check out Facts 2007 - 2008.

How to donate?

Make a secure online donation on the left.

OR,
Make out a check payable to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

OR,
cash works too.

and if you know anyone who might donate, please pass this along.

My thanks, and thanks from The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

January 21, 2008

I Completed My First Half Marathon!!

I completed the Carlsbad Half Marathon on Sunday, Jan. 20th! It took me 3 hours 26 minutes and 23 seconds... pretty slow, but I made it!! :-)

Below is a letter explaining why I joined Team In Training last year, and why I joined again this year.

Dear Family & Friends,

I'm writing today to ask for your help. Let me tell you a story.

In January 2007, I decided to do something for myself – I wanted to train to run in a 5K race. I found a beginner’s program that would allow a beginning runner to get in shape for a 5K in 12 weeks. I began to follow this program earnestly.

About a month later, when I was looking for 5K races in my area, I came across the Team In Training website. Team In Training is sponsored by The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The local event they would start training for was the Rock ‘N’ Roll Marathon. Yes, a 26.2 mile marathon, quite farther than a 5K, which is 3.1 miles!

Mostly out of curiosity, I attended an information session for Team in Training. They played a tape showing the history of the program, and it turns out they started back in 1988 when a guy named Bruce Cleland gathered 38 runners to compete in the New York City Marathon. Bruce's daughter was a leukemia survivor, and they raised $322,000 that first year in her honor. Since then, more than 295,000 volunteers have participated, raising more than $660,000,000 - six hundred and sixty million dollars to help fight cancer!

Every one of those dollars made an impact. For every dollar the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society brings in, seventy five cents goes directly toward saving lives, either in the form of research, education, or patient services. The other twenty-five percent goes to pay for the costs associated with the Team In Training program.

Here's an example of the kind of work they do. Since 1995, the Society has been funding a doctor named Brian Druker. His early research focused on a molecule that could potentially inhibit the growth of certain cancerous blood cells. When he brought his research out of the lab and into the clinic, the drug proved remarkably effective at treating a type of Leukemia called CML. This drug, called Gleevec, is now helping people all over the world.

But the battle is far from over. This year, approximately 54,480 Americans will die from Leukemia, Lymphoma, and other blood cancers. That's one person every ten minutes.

I've seen a lot of facts and figures about cancer in the past few weeks – I've got a whole binder on my desk now. But it's easy to ignore statistics, and those numbers aren't why I signed up.

My real decision to do this came when Matt Jones came to me and introduced himself. Matt is in tremendous shape. In fact, this guy is a picture of health, or so it seemed. But after introducing himself, he told me he was a Leukemia survivor. In 2004, an implant that was placed in his brain after the Leukemia had spread there became infected. He went into a coma, and upon awakening, he had to learn how to tie his shoes, and how to walk all over again.

Within 1 ½ years, Matt had ran his first marathon with Team In Training as an honored hero. Well, if he could do it, surely I can as well!

After hearing Matt’s story, I began to think more and more about my Uncle Wayne, who had fought so hard against lymphoma, but was not able to win the war. He lost the war in June 2001 after the cancer spread to his esophagus. I remember Uncle Wayne mostly as the uncle with the red hair and mustache. I remember him being the quiet, “tough” guy who loved Harley’s and served his community as a St. Louis County cop.

When he was first diagnosed with lymphoma, Uncle Wayne was given an extremely low chance of survival. But after his first battle, he went into remission for three years. What a wonderful gift he gave to his family and friends.

The more I thought of Uncle Wayne, and how much I missed him, and after listening to Matt's story, I couldn't say no. It wasn't about feeling guilty or scared or sorry for someone. It just made me realize that this was the right thing to do. So I signed up.

About a week later, I was at the kickoff rally, a huge event with at least two hundred people at the Surfside Race Place at the Del Mar Fairgrounds in California - every one of whom is out there now raising funds and training for a marathon, triathlon or century. And every one of whom has a story as to why they are doing this.

I met my Team In Training mentor, Connie, who told me about a 5 year-old girl who was a classmate of her daughters, which had been diagnosed with leukemia last year. This prompted her to join Team In Training and run in the Nike Women’s Marathon in 2006.

Every day in the news, we hear about war and terror in faraway countries, but these diseases are right here. It doesn't make headlines when a little girl's hair falls out, or when a bright young teenager dies in a hospital bed. But these things happen every single day. In America, only heart disease kills more people than cancer – nothing else even comes close.

But this is a problem we can solve. Doctors and scientists are working all around the world, and every day brings them closer to a cure. Some day, they'll find a cure. But they need our help.

At the training sessions, when I'm out of breath, struggling up a hill trying to keep up with the other runners, I try to think about Uncle Wayne and as well as all the people fighting for their lives around the world. As running coach Julie told us one day, no matter how hard it is to get to the top of that hill, it's nothing compared to what the people we're trying to help have to go through.

So this year, I have joined again. And so, I've committed to raising at least $975 this year for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society between now and April. That's a big number, but I know it's doable – with your help. All it would really take is finding 10 people to donate $100 each, or 20 people to donate $50, or even 39 people to donate $25.

Today, I'm asking you to be one of these people.

I know not everyone can afford $25, and if you can't, I understand. But every dollar counts and any amount you can spare will make a real difference.

So here's the deal. All donations are 100% tax deductible, and it only takes a minute to donate: you can do it right now with a credit card by using the form on the left hand side of this webpage.

Thank you very much in advance! I hope you have a wonderful day, but even if nothing else goes right today, you'll be able to look back on today know that you've done something important. You're helping to cure cancer here. That's something to be proud of.

I hope you'll visit my web site often. Be sure to check back frequently to see my progress.

Thanks for your support!