Why ?

Most who know me know that physical activity isn't exactly my idea of "fun". So what am I doing thinking that I can hike the canyon in the middle of summer.... surely I must be crazy.. maybe I am.

The idea of wanting to do something about cancer has been an itch since 1999 when Judy's dad C.L. Gilbert succumbed to Leukemia.

Last spring one of our friends - Joyce Piatt trained to hike the canyon and in the process raised money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society who fund research into all kinds of Blood Cancers. I was inspired.

I felt that this fund-raising would be a meaningful contribution to the world-wide efforts against cancer.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Kennesaw Mountain, GA.


Kennesaw Mountain, GA.

The Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is 15 minutes from our home and we drive past and even through all the time, but had never actually spent much time at the park. That changed this past Saturday.

This was the longest hike that the group has embarked on this season. I actually got to wake up late (at 6:45 AM) and got to the park as usual at 8. We had a person from LLS come and explain the basics of leukemia and other blood cancers. We hiked up and over "big" Kennesaw and then up and over "little" Kennesaw to Burnt Hickory Road and then back up and over and up and over back to the Visitor center. We hiked a total of about 5 miles.

I got to test my trekking poles and they made a huge difference. Climbing was a lot less harder and descending was lot easier on my knees. The only problem was that, with two hands tied up, the camera had to stay in the backpack. I did not get too many pictures. There were some really neat features such as the natural rock garden and the cannons up "little" Kennesaw... will have to go back to get pictures. also, will have to figure out a way to rig the camera so it can be accessed easily. The few pictures I snapped are available here.

Fund Raising Update:
We set a target of reaching the 25% mark - $1,125 by March 15th. As of March 12th, We have already surpassed that goal. We have now raised $1,185 Yes!

Next target is to hit the 50% mark - %2,250 by March 31. Thank You everyone.

Elijah Update:
Last week, I wrote about our honored hero Elijah Cox who has been fighting leukemia. here is an update from his mom..

"He is currently on treatment. He takes daily chemo medication that I administer to him and then he goes in once a month for the liquid forms of chemo, have his port flushed and each 3rd month he has a spinal tap and that day is usually our longest day at the clinic. But God has been so good and Elijah is able to tolerate the medication without any problems.

He is due to come off treatment in May of this year. He has 1 spinal tap left. After May, he will be on maintenance and will go once a month to check his blood to make sure no cancer cells are present. He will do this for 1 year.

When he was first diagnosed and I was told that his treatment is for 3 years and 2 months, it seemed like forever. But, the years have gone by and I can’t believe that May is just around the corner. Thank You for your support and concern for Elijah. We really appreciate all that you do for all those with cancer past, present and future.

Ladonna."
Excerpt from an email sent to Karen at the LLS on March 7th, 2007.
Go Elijah!

Power of your money:
As you consider a donation to this cause, consider what your donation can do...

  • $ 40 - Cost of sending a comprehensive packet of information for children with cancer.

  • $ 35 - Pays for transportation expenses for a patient living in Northern California’s most rural areas to treatment at a comprehensive cancer center.

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Raffle

Every donor was entered into a raffle with one entry for every $10 donated. There are five prizes that can be one. Each donor can win no more than one prize. The first winner gets to choose any one of the five prizes, The second winner gets to choose any one of the remaining four and so on and so forth.

1. Flora

24" x 24" poster. all photographs by Albert Thomas. See larger image.
2. Sun and Water

24" x 24" poster. all photographs by Albert Thomas. See larger image.

3. Super Bowl I - XXX

A football lovers dream. Collectors set of DVDs of all the Superbowls from I to XXX by NFL films.

4. TaylorMade Golf Balls

A dozen TaylorMade Distance Plus golf balls. According to TaylorMade, these balls are "built to maximize distance and improve scoring for the committed player".

5. Maxfli Golf Balls

A dozen Maxfli Noodle Golf Balls.

... and the winners are

  1. Bill McGregor - Roswell, GA.
  2. Joyce Piatt - Mableton, GA.
  3. Frank Jakse - St. Louis, MO.
  4. Senthil Mukunthan - Indianapolis, IN.
  5. Push Venkat - Chicago, IL.

Options to spend money and feel good about it..

Help bridge the chasm by purchasing one or more of the following unique services. Some of these have a material cost component. This will not count as a tax-deductible contribution. Please send me an email if you would like to commission one of the following. Thank You.
1. Scan and Create Web Album from photos – 75 Photos.

Got a lot of pictures from your pre-digital days? I will scan those and create a slideshow CD. If needed, I can also upload them online and create a web album for you. I can scan up to 75 pictures. If you have more ( I hope you do), please see the next item.

Sponsorship Amount: $75 (entire amount is tax-deductible) Material Cost: $0

2. Scan and Create Web Album from photos – 150 Photos.

Got a lot of pictures from your pre-digital days? I will scan those and create a slideshow CD. If needed, I can also upload them online and create a web album for you. I can scan up to 150 pictures.

Sponsorship Amount: $100 (entire amount is tax-deductible) Material Cost: $0

3. Your own Photo Poster.

How about a photo mosaic of your favorite pictures and/or your favorite people. This will make a great gift for all those times when you have no clue what to buy (Hint: Mother’s Day is 5/13/07 and Father’s Day is 6/17/07).

  • Make poster from Digital images or Prints (up to 30 prints).
  • Poster Size - 24” x 24”.
  • Poster shown here is a sample. Click here for larger samples - Flora : Sun and Water.

Sponsorship Amount: $100 Material Cost: $30 (24” x 24” poster)

4. Painted Wall Mural.

Planning a birthday party? How about a set for the party? The mural will be painted on poster paper and affixed to the wall using push pins so you can remove after the event. No need to repaint.

  • Poster Size – 10’ x 8’.
  • The pictures shown here are from Ashley’s 6th Birthday. Click here to see larger photos of the mural - Photo1 : Photo 2.
  • My painting skills are pretty rudimentary (to say the least) and so we have to stick to cartoons. For your sake, please don’t ask me to paint someone you know
Sponsorship Amount: $200 (entire amount is tax-deductible) Material Cost: $0 ( I already bought way too much paper and paint)

5. Mondrian Coffee Table.

So what does a $500 coffee table look like? Like the dining table pictured here. This is a one of a kind, contemporary coffee table that is also a piece of art. The coffee table is hand-crafted and consists of a Piet Mondrian reproduction using acrylic on canvas, framed by wood with a metallic finish. I don’t have a picture of the coffee table itself, because it hasn’t been made yet. Click here for a larger photo of the dining table. Coffee table will be 48” x 36”.

Sponsorship Amount: $500 Material Cost: $100

6. Warhol at the Georgia Aquarium – Poster.

Warhol never visited the Georgia Aquarium. What if he had? What if he had seen the anemones at the Cold Water Quest? The poster was created using a photo I took of the anemones recently.

Sponsorship Amount: $100 Material Cost: $30 (24” x 24” poster)