March Donation

March has flown by for me! While my mind and heart have still been thinking of what to blog about and wanting to blog, I just haven’t been able to physically make the time to do it. Crazy how time flies huh? One of the reasons I have been so busy, is the fact that I got engaged March 18^th! And with a wedding only 4 months away, the last two weeks have been solely devoted to wedding planning when I haven’t been working, eating, or sleeping. But without further delay, here is some information about the organization that I am donating my $100 to for the month of March:

My one my girlfriends Desiree, works for the American Cancer Society and every year they run the Relay for Life. I remember raising funds in elementary and Jr high school for the event, but have not been educated about it since. Desiree sent out a few emails to her friends and family awhile back, asking for donations and it made me think about how neat it would be for me to support her for the month of March! After asking about the event and doing some research, I can see why she is so passionate about this opportunity to raise funds to help fight cancer. And what a neat way to do it!!!

One of the quotes I love from her email was “help us as we work to save lives and create a world with more birthdays! Every donation brings us one step closer to a cure.” – what a great concept and something that everyone can become passionate about! There’s not one of us that has not been affected by cancer in some way or another.

Desiree is running the race on June 10^th here in Oklahoma City. I’ll actually be out of the country on a trip myself, but I had her send me some information on the race in case you are interested. Just hearing her tell me about last year’s race, made me wish I could see it for myself. Here’s what she sent me:

The OKC Relay for Life is on Friday, June 10th at 7pm and goes until 7am on Saturday, June 11th.  It is at Southern Nazarene University's sports complex off on 50th west of Council and the theme this year is "Rushing for a Cure".  The overall community goal is to raise $100,000 and all the proceeds goes towards cancer research, education and patient care.  During the night of relay, the goal is to have someone on your team to walk the track around the field the whole time the relay is going on.  Some teams will camp out during the relay event.  We have a special time during relay, where all the survivors walk a lap around the field, which is emotional to watch. When it gets dark, we have these bags called luminaries, which is a paper bag with a candle in it that we light in honor/memory of someone that has cancer.  People will buy these and decorate them for someone they know or if they don't want to decorate them, we will do it for them.  They outline the football field so it is really cool when they are lit. Also, we put some up in the stands that spell “hope” and then during the ceremony, the word changes to “cure”. There are activities that go on the night of relay that make it fun for all who are attending.  It is free of cost to get in, but inside, each team has some kind of fundraiser going on, so there are plenty of donation opportunities at the event itself.

 So how does the race benefit others?

•        It helps people get well by educating them on how to reduce their risk of cancer, and how to detect it early, at its most treatable stage
•  Helps people stay well by providing support to newly diagnosed patients in the form of transportation, lodging, wigs, education, and more
• ·       Finds cures by supporting millions of dollars in research grants each year to the best and brightest young researchers in their field of expertise
•        And fights back by supporting laws at the local, state, and federal level that will have a positive impact on healthcare and cancer patients nationwide

I was so happy to donate to such a cause and hope that you will check out a Race for the Cure in your area, wherever you live. If you’d like to find out more info about how your donation and time could make a difference, please visit their donation page.