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Sunday, September 4, 2011

Waves and Wildfires

The destructive force of children's cancer is like the tidal wave that overtook Japan's shorelines last year. If you watched any of the footage like I did in the middle of the night, you saw how there was no escape from the mighty ocean waters.
At the speed that wave was going, there was nothing that could stop it from infiltrating the land. There were cars that would not escape that day and peoples lives that would be lost to the forces of nature.

This sounds a lot like cancer, but it does not have to be. With the amount of people spreading awareness this month and the funds being raised, there will soon be a cure found. There are already results being found in lab tests that will soon change the way chemotherapy  is used. It is going to take a lot of people to get a lot of attention from a world that is not aware. In order to make this world aware, we are going to have to use every resource available as well as all the tricks up our sleeves to steal away the attention that is so easily given to worthless things.

Facebook and Caring Bridge are already spreading awareness like a wildfire but it is also going to take personal sacrifice to raise awareness. This month will be a big push to get the attention of the right people to do the Right Thing by funding children's cancer research, but I am going go start small with a mini fundraiser that will raise awareness as well as help a family or two that is confined to the hospital for their treatment.

Most hospitals have a few ways to get on the Internet to share what is going on during treatment, but it's not always that easy. We were fortunate enough to have bought some iPods last Christmas with Wi-Fi that could be used at the hospital on their free network. We could also play games and download cartoons for Lincoln to watch when the hospital TV wasn't what he wanted to watch.

Every time I've been to the clinic, I see a child or a parent that could use a little distraction from the pain and emotions that seem to be locked in the hospital room with them. My goal for raising awareness would be to ask for up to $1000 to buy an IPad 2 for one of the families that are spending so much time away from home. They will be able to watch shows and movies, talk with and gain support from people around the world, and even learn more about how they can battle the type of cancer they are dealing with.

I am going to ask everyone who reads this to either make a donation, whatever they can afford, or tell someone else how they can help. This fundraiser will be just the beginning of the continued efforts towards raising awareness and eventually a cure.

I know we can do it together to take some of the suffering away from a family in need and I can't wait to present it to them so you all can see what a difference you made.

I don't know exactly how I will collect the funds yet, but if you trust me enough, you can send any amount to my address in my name to 9195 Portland Rd NE, Salem, OR 97305 unit 8. If someone knows a better way for me to collect online, let me know because I will want to continue to raise funds in the future.

Thanks for making it so easy for us when Lincoln was hurting, now let's help the next child and family who needs it most.

P.s. If anyone know how much they can give and wants to pledge how much they will commit to, I will go out and buy the iPad 2 today. Please email me your amount to ricksson33@yahoo.com

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