First I want to take just a brief moment to let you all know that Meredith is doing great. Normal, lovely, mischievous, little 2nd grader… No real medical update as she hasn’t had any blood work since before Christmas as none is needed. She has had the joy of being re-immunized. Everything gets rebooted during a transplant and lucky her gets to have all the shots that she was far too little to remember the first time as a baby. She also gets another round over spring break which she is not exactly looking forward to. Now on to the really important part of this update. Like Ashley mentioned at Christmas our primary intent of keeping this site active was to allow for future communications regarding some of our fundraising efforts for the Family Support Program(FSP), part of the Duke Pediatric Bone and Marrow Transplant Program. The Rainbow of Heroes Walk(http://www.rainbowofheroeswalk.org) is coming up on May 2,2009 and we are actively seeking donations to help support this program.
We were extremely lucky to have a number of factors in our favor during Meredith’s transplant. Prompt diagnoses, perfect match with Savannah, great insurance, relative proximity to treatment, and most of all a fantastic support network composed of all of you reading this message. Needless to say our family was by far the exception on many of those counts. Serveral of the families that were there battling last year with us are still fighting today. Undergoing a blood or marrow transplant can be one of the most terrifying and lonely experiences a family may ever endure. The life and death struggle affects not only the patient, but the entire family. The necessity to embrace families during this time is vital to their social, emotional and often times financial survival. The Family Support Program was founded in 1997 as a partnership, born though the efforts of families who experienced transplant at Duke and the PBMT staff. FSP facilitates over 25 active programs and services including daily activities for patients(bingo, art and music therapy) programs for caregivers(massage therapy, salon day, community meals), volunteer (Best Buddies, Rainbow Volunteers), and financial assistance for lodging, transportation, and food.
Last year Team Merrymaid(Meredith’s nickname) raised nearly $15,000 dollars in support of this program. This year we have our targets set on $25,000. Given the tough economic times across the US and around the world we are especially challenged to dig a little deeper this year. Donations can be made through the Rainbow of Heroes website found here, http://rainbowofheroeswalk.org/donate/?team=Team+Merrymaid, Donations via the web are secure(via Duke’s secure payment processing system) and all donations are fully tax deductible. Alternately you can make a check payable to “Duke University” and indicate “09RH Team Merrymaid” in the memo field and either personally deliver to me or mail directly to:
Lindsey Kearns
DUMC Box 3350
Durham, NC 27710
We appreciate all the support you gave our family in the past and want to ensure you that donations towards this program are truly appreciated and put to the very best of use. Please feel free to give me a call or drop me an email if you have any questions at all regarding this program.
Sincerely,
jody
336.918.1836
Company matching: If you are part of a company that matches donations, please submit appropriate paperwork along with your check or enter the information online when the Duke system prompts you. To see whether your company matches donations to Duke, http://www.matchinggifts.com/duke/.
