Wow, fundraising for a large sum of money sure looks a high hurdle. Raising $65,000 is no picnic, to say the least. Thankfully some really great people are stepping up to the plate and helping out in a big way.
First fundraising event is penciled for February 19th. Not sure on the exact location as of yet. Will have to get back to you all when everything gets firmed up. Down here in Texas we love our BBQ! So why not kick things off with a BBQ plate fundraising event!
You may have guessed that the second fundraising event would be a BBQ plate also! Ha, you are sooo clever!!! Did I ever tell you that we love our BBQ down here? LOL Chef Ernest Servantes has graciously offered to help us with our efforts on March 5th. Will update this on another post when all of the details are confirmed.
We are kicking around the idea of doing a casino night in April, if time permits. Will keep everyone posted with any more information on this idea. Who knows, it may never come into fruition. But if it does it could be a fun and exciting night.
Our boxers are in my corner
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Saturday, January 23, 2016
"Can you stop my MS" documentary on the BBC
It is fascinating to see the rest of the world catching up to the fact that HSCT can help many people with autoimmune diseases. This concept has really been around since the mid 1990s. Here is a well made documentary by the BBC and released this month. To me it begs the question "Where has the world been in helping out people like myself and other MS sufferers? The Dr. that will be treating me this April has been helping sufferers now for about 10 years. I am so very grateful that he will be my attending physician to help stop the disease progression and maintain my quality of life as best as possible. Please enjoy the video and I hope it is informative for you!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrMvnS5aC0E
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Kristy Cruise video
I always enjoy an inspiring story. Against all perceived odds the underdog wins. My Facebook friend, Kristy Cruise, has one such story. It was filmed by 60 minutes Australia and aired almost two years ago. Please watch this short video about courage, perseverance, and fight. It’s a very uplifting story; you may want to have a Kleenex nearby. She is a real trailblazer and warrior.
My journey for battling MS will begin in late April. Like Kristy, I will be travelling to Moscow and be treated by the same medical team.
My journey for battling MS will begin in late April. Like Kristy, I will be travelling to Moscow and be treated by the same medical team.
Wednesday, January 13, 2016
Fundraising planning underway
Boy, there sure is a lot of work involved with planning fundraising. Guess its compounded for me with the fact that I only have three more months until my transplant. Oh well, time to roll up the sleeves and get going. Nothing is going to happen by itself, right?
My buddy Bill Squires stopped by my office yesterday and we did some pre planning for the BBQ fundraiser that he is doing for me at TLU. Bill is taking the bull by the horns and is doing most of the work on this one. Should be a lot of fun as we are thinking about taking in a basketball game after the dinner. Will get back to everyone with the location, date, and time when things are firmed up.
Celebrity chef Ernest Servantes, Alicia, and I are in early planning for another BBQ fundraiser. Hmm, do you sense a trend here? LOL We love BBQ here in Texas and I am hopeful that we can get a good turnout. There is no doubt in my mind that there will be excellent BBQ to be eaten!!!
Here is a picture of Ernest and I.
My buddy Bill Squires stopped by my office yesterday and we did some pre planning for the BBQ fundraiser that he is doing for me at TLU. Bill is taking the bull by the horns and is doing most of the work on this one. Should be a lot of fun as we are thinking about taking in a basketball game after the dinner. Will get back to everyone with the location, date, and time when things are firmed up.
Celebrity chef Ernest Servantes, Alicia, and I are in early planning for another BBQ fundraiser. Hmm, do you sense a trend here? LOL We love BBQ here in Texas and I am hopeful that we can get a good turnout. There is no doubt in my mind that there will be excellent BBQ to be eaten!!!
Here is a picture of Ernest and I.
Saturday, January 9, 2016
Gratitude......and another slice of humble pie
I woke up this morning at 4:00 am. Immediately thought of a text message that I received from my friend Bill Squires. Grateful is the best way to describe how I feel when people will put themselves out to help another. Bill texted that he would like to have a BBQ fundraiser to help me with my transplant expenses. I am very humbled and grateful by his generous offer. A slice of humble pie for me. As I lay there I am overwhelmed with emotion, my chest swells, tears flow.
It takes me back a few years. The same level of emotion, the same thoughts of gratitude, eating humble pie. Many of you may remember the terrible car wreck that I was party to in 2009. There was many prayers circles organized around the country. People of whom I did not know sent me cards and prayed for me. Trust me, I could feel their faith and love. My friend Phil Ruge-Jones' teaching of Theology inspired me in this difficult time. I was still healing my 14 broken bones, collapsed lung, comatose state. RJ talked about God as energy and that really resonated with me. I wrote a paper on optimism because these two things intertwined in my mind. Prayer circles and the love that I felt gave me optimism and energy. God fueled my optimism and healing, all helped out by people. People like Bill. People like you. Again I am overwhelmed with emotion as I type. Again I am grateful. Again I eat another slice of humble pie.
Alicia and I have another friend who has offered to help us with BBQ fundraiser also. He told Alicia that he is honored to help us. It is I who is honored. Honored to know people like this. Honored to have them as friends. Most of all, very grateful. Another slice of humble pie please. And a larger belt as my waistline is ever expanding!
It takes me back a few years. The same level of emotion, the same thoughts of gratitude, eating humble pie. Many of you may remember the terrible car wreck that I was party to in 2009. There was many prayers circles organized around the country. People of whom I did not know sent me cards and prayed for me. Trust me, I could feel their faith and love. My friend Phil Ruge-Jones' teaching of Theology inspired me in this difficult time. I was still healing my 14 broken bones, collapsed lung, comatose state. RJ talked about God as energy and that really resonated with me. I wrote a paper on optimism because these two things intertwined in my mind. Prayer circles and the love that I felt gave me optimism and energy. God fueled my optimism and healing, all helped out by people. People like Bill. People like you. Again I am overwhelmed with emotion as I type. Again I am grateful. Again I eat another slice of humble pie.
Alicia and I have another friend who has offered to help us with BBQ fundraiser also. He told Alicia that he is honored to help us. It is I who is honored. Honored to know people like this. Honored to have them as friends. Most of all, very grateful. Another slice of humble pie please. And a larger belt as my waistline is ever expanding!
Friday, January 8, 2016
Welcome to my blog
Hello and thank you for stopping by to read my blog. I would like to dedicate this blog as a story of hope and inspiration. The journey that I am about to embark on is to find a better place in my health so that I may be able to enjoy life with the highest quality of life possible. That is, the highest quality possible for someone who has been diagnosed with such an insidious disease such as MS.
The early part of this blog will be slow paced as my treatment date is still three months away. Until then I will be doing much to prepare for the treatment and will keep you up to date as much as possible. Please stop by periodically to check up with what is happening. Look forward to seeing you around (no I cannot really see you through your webcam, I am not the government after all!)
My journey is one that will take me to the other side of the world for a medical treatment that is unavailable to me in the US. Fortunately it is not a new, or experimental, treatment as its been around since the 1950's. It is called Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant, or HSCT as it is more easily called. I favor the easy way to pronounce it! Wonder if you are familiar with it, my guess is that you are. It is the treatment similarly used for Leukemia patients and is often referred to as Bone Marrow Transplant. So you now understand that it has been around for a long time, just not used for autoimmune diseases such as MS. Ironically in the 1990's it was found that when autoimmune patients also had blood cancers, and were treated with HSCT, it was found that their disease progression was halted after treatment. What an exciting find for patients like myself! There has been ongoing clinical trials since then to get approval for this treatment in the US. I applied for one such trial in Chicago, but was not accepted because of their strict criteria for patient acceptance. That has led me to look overseas for treatment. Lucky for me the internet allows us to research and find so much information about so many things. Its a great time for us to be alive! My decision has been made to seek treatment in Moscow, Russia with the world renowned physician Dr. Denis Federenko. He is affectionately called Dr. F. and has written several abstract about treating autoimmune diseases with HSCT. We have connected with several people who have been treated by Dr. F. and the feedback from them is stellar. Alicia and I have absolute confidence that I will be in very good hands during my stay in Moscow.
Alicia and I will being flying to Moscow at the end of April this year. My treatment is scheduled to begin on the 26th. This will be a journey like none other. Scary, yet exciting, and also hopeful. Hopeful in that I can maintain good quality of life for the duration of my time here on earth. I will have many of you readers to thank for that with your hugs, prayers, thoughts, well wishes, donations, and spiritual support. I can't thank you enough. There is no way this could ever happen without you. So thank you from the bottom of my heart, please accept my virtual hug, virtual handshake, or virtual pat on the back as you deserve it. Everyone of you has a special place in my heart. THANK YOU!!!
The early part of this blog will be slow paced as my treatment date is still three months away. Until then I will be doing much to prepare for the treatment and will keep you up to date as much as possible. Please stop by periodically to check up with what is happening. Look forward to seeing you around (no I cannot really see you through your webcam, I am not the government after all!)
My journey is one that will take me to the other side of the world for a medical treatment that is unavailable to me in the US. Fortunately it is not a new, or experimental, treatment as its been around since the 1950's. It is called Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant, or HSCT as it is more easily called. I favor the easy way to pronounce it! Wonder if you are familiar with it, my guess is that you are. It is the treatment similarly used for Leukemia patients and is often referred to as Bone Marrow Transplant. So you now understand that it has been around for a long time, just not used for autoimmune diseases such as MS. Ironically in the 1990's it was found that when autoimmune patients also had blood cancers, and were treated with HSCT, it was found that their disease progression was halted after treatment. What an exciting find for patients like myself! There has been ongoing clinical trials since then to get approval for this treatment in the US. I applied for one such trial in Chicago, but was not accepted because of their strict criteria for patient acceptance. That has led me to look overseas for treatment. Lucky for me the internet allows us to research and find so much information about so many things. Its a great time for us to be alive! My decision has been made to seek treatment in Moscow, Russia with the world renowned physician Dr. Denis Federenko. He is affectionately called Dr. F. and has written several abstract about treating autoimmune diseases with HSCT. We have connected with several people who have been treated by Dr. F. and the feedback from them is stellar. Alicia and I have absolute confidence that I will be in very good hands during my stay in Moscow.
Alicia and I will being flying to Moscow at the end of April this year. My treatment is scheduled to begin on the 26th. This will be a journey like none other. Scary, yet exciting, and also hopeful. Hopeful in that I can maintain good quality of life for the duration of my time here on earth. I will have many of you readers to thank for that with your hugs, prayers, thoughts, well wishes, donations, and spiritual support. I can't thank you enough. There is no way this could ever happen without you. So thank you from the bottom of my heart, please accept my virtual hug, virtual handshake, or virtual pat on the back as you deserve it. Everyone of you has a special place in my heart. THANK YOU!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)