26.2 Miles and $2,800. Can She Do It??
With your help, I can race to save lives
On Friday evening, my mother called to tell me that my grandmother finally succumbed to her illness. Although we were all expecting this day to come, and it is a relief to know that her suffering has ended, I'm still feeling tremendous sadness. For years, I've been telling stories about my grandmother's remarkable willingness to defy convention and to stand up to anyone and anything that got in her way. The story I've always loved most was that of her journey to Canada in 1946. Like more than 50,000 other women, Mollie (nee Mary Darroch) came to Canada after meeting and marrying a Canadian soldier, Eldon Miller, during wartime. At only seventeen years of age, she left her home country of Scotland and boarded a trans-Atlantic ship that would sail into Halifax harbour at Pier 21. Eventually, she settled into her home in rural New Brunswick. She made the house and surrounding landscape of Upper Caverhill her own, planting beautiful flowers and lush vegetables, finding the sweetest wild strawberries and blackberries that she would make into the most delicious jams. She regularly traveling through its beautiful woods, for many years with a small herd of dogs leading the way. She could identify the myriad birds that filled the country air with song, and even imitate many of their calls; she could show you how to catch delicate butterflies and fireflies without causing the creatures any harm; she could write exquisite letters that brought all the imagery of the countryside, and her love, to your doorstep; she could recite playful Gaelic limericks that would make you forget what was ailing you; and she could sing songs of her native Scotland that would bring its beautiful landscape to life. While Mollie learned to love her new home in Canada, she never lost her deep affection for Scotland or the remnants of her Glaswegian accent. In making that remarkable voyage, Mollie displayed a pioneering spirit and resilience that her family and friends have long admired. Her courageous journey, from Kirkintilloch, Scotland, to Upper Caverhill, New Brunswick, from Calgary, Alberta, to her final resting place, is one that will continue to inspire our family for generations to come.
My Grandmother, Mollie (Mary) Miller, circa 1945.
Dear Friends & Family,
Several weeks ago, I rose at 6am to run 10 miles in the pouring rain. The following week, I ran more than 12 miles while battling high heat and humidity. My motivation for rising at such an early hour and facing such inhospitable weather? The belief that I can help patients who are battling leukemia, lymphoma and other blood cancers. With that goal in mind, I will keep running through all kinds of weather. And on October 22, 2006 I will run the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon as a member of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Team in Training.
Running 26.2 miles is a huge personal challenge. Part of this formidable challenge will involve raising $2,800 to support the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's mission—to fund scientific research into leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma and bring hope to the patients and families who are on the front lines of the battle against these diseases. After watching a close friend of mine lose her daughter to leukemia and observing my grandmother’s ongoing battle with blood cancer, I felt compelled to support this important mission. On October 22, I will run in honor of my grandmother's valiant personal battle against blood cancers. I hope that you, too, will honor her by making a contribution.
While the relative five-year survival rate for leukemia patients has more than tripled in the past 45 years, and survival rates in lymphoma and myeloma patients have also shown improvement, much more work needs to be done. Since its founding in 1949, the Society has invested more than $424 million in research specifically targeting blood cancers. In fact, in 2005 the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society contributed 1.2 million dollars to support two major research trials being conducted at the University of Rochester, including the work of Steven Bernstein, M.D, whose research team is developing promising new agents that target lymphoma cells differently than current therapies. Such work holds tremendous hope for patients who do not respond to traditional chemotherapy treatments.
Your contribution will support continued research, patient assistance, education, and the work needed to help find a cure for these devastating diseases. Please consider making a secure, on-line donation today. Your contribution will help blood cancer patients throughout the world win a much more difficult race. Thanks in advance for your support!
Best regards,
April Miller
