Catie's CURE Classic benefitting CURE Childhood Cancer

We're gearing up for our golf tournament for this year and it's coming up quickly. We've taken a couple of years off, but we're back and we're hoping to have a great turnout for the tourney. The tournament will be held on June 20 at Black Creek Golf Club. For details on the tourney, go to http://catiescureclassic.com. This is the first year the tournament will be a memorial tournament, but we do this to honor our sweet Catie and the life she lived. We also do it so that other families won't know the devastating loss that is so often caused by childhood cancer. All proceeds will go directly to CURE Childhood Cancer (http://www.curechildhoodcancer.org/). We are in need of sponsors (levels are: Hole for $100 and Corporate for $500 and $1000), golfers, and door prizes. Each sponsorship comes w/ different perks, so visit our website to check them out (http://catiescureclassic.com/).

Given the lovely economic times we're in, we're taking a bit of a different approach this year. We are still seeking "normal" sponsors (at the levels listed above), but we also realize that smaller donations add up to make big donations. We are seeking folks who might not be able to be a hole sponsor, but could handle giving $25 (or $10 or $50). If we could have 100 people donate $25, that would be $2500 (and the equivalent of 25 hole sponsors)... 200 folks giving $25 would give us $5000, and so forth.

So, here is my challenge to you. (I'm not usually one to issue challenges, but today I'm going for it). If you are able and willing to donate to our cause, please do. You can easily do it through PayPal on our site (http://catiescureclassic.com/) or to Catie's Fund page ( http://www.curechildhoodcancer.org/default.asp?contentID=66). If you donate at Catie's Fund page, please list "Catie's Fund for Golf Tournament" in the comments section. The second part of my challenge is this... PLEASE forward this on to folks on your contact list. If half of the folks who receive this e-mail give a small amount of money and if everyone forwards this on, we could really build a large army and raise a lot of money.
Forwarding is a HUGE part of this effort because it allows us to reach a large number of people.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and thanks for forwarding this on and donating if you are able. These donations (which need to be made by June 26) fund research that is literally life-giving.

Atlanta

We went to Atlanta this weekend. We were hoping to leave on Friday, but had to wait and leave later b/c Iz and Tre' were sick. They both are on antibiotics and feeling much better. We missed out on seeing Grandpa Mike Mike and Granny Liz b/c we had to leave later and we hated that. We'll get back up soon though. We were able to go to the circus at Philips Arena. Iz loved it. She was really tired that afternoon, and as you can see, fell asleep before it was over (how she and Chip could sleep through all that noise, I have NO idea!!). Even though she dozed, she loved the show. This evening she was on the phone w/ GaGa and was telling her about the elephants, horses, little horses, tigers, clowns, etc. It's so funny to listen to her tell a story. :) She really did have a big time and I think us grown ups enjoyed it as well! Thanks Dennis for getting the tickets!!

We were also in town to have Izzy scanned. She's doing just fine, Dr. Claire just recommended that we scan once a year until she's 5. The scan was perfectly normal. :) WOOHOO!!! Even though we weren't seeing anything concerning, it is always nice to get confirmation. We saw Dr. Claire and had a nice visit with her. It was so nice to see her and we ran into some other folks as well. As we were leaving and heading to the parking deck, we also ran into Dr. Hudgins (Catie's neurosurgeon). We hadn't seen him since the day Catie died when he came to say goodbye, so that was a nice surprise.

Iz had a rough morning as she turns out to be a really tough stick (took 6 tries). She cried and kept telling them no, but she didn't fight them. Tre' and I were really proud of how well she did.

Being away from all of the medical stuff for so long, it was odd to be back. It was only for a day, but I saw everything in such a different light. When Catie was sick, it was what we did. It was our life. There was no choice. We took it , ran with it, and just made the best of it. We lived well and lived full and didn't spend a lot of time focusing on all the "stuff" that had to be done to manage her illness. I didn't do a lot of thinking about how it must have felt to be her. Sometimes I wish I'd given her a chance to talk about that more. As we went through the familiar routine yesterday, I was struck by how much kids with cancer and other chronic/serious illnesses must deal with each day. So many procedures and sticks and pokes and prods... It was all new to Izzy and that made me focus a bit more on just how much a child has to go through just for a simple MRI and a quick clinic visit. It really is amazing what must be endured to fight cancer.

Thankfully, all was well, and today all is back to normal for Ms. Izzy. Normal for her usually starts out something like in the picture at the top of the page. There's her crazy morning hair. :) Still as we enjoy what is now our normal, we think of those whose normal is what we did yesterday...

(The other pics are of Chip and then Izzy w/ Dr. Claire, both kids passed out before the circus ended, Izzy goofing off at the circus, and her first taste of cotton candy

A Couple of Things

Just two things here:
1. A reminder that William's Walk is coming up. Click that link to register (we'd love to have you as a Catie's Cruiser -- Abby's Angels could also use support as they rally around Abby as she's just begun her relapse battle). Remember Phantom participants are always welcome too! Thanks to those who have already joined our team! We can't wait to see you on Saturday! If you want to support the cause, but don't want to register for a team, you can make donation at this link if you wish. All proceeds go to the Brain Tumor Foundation for children to fund research and provide support for families. It's a great event that takes place in Alpharetta, GA that's fun for the whole family.

2. A friend of mine has asked me to share Catie's story and our journey at her church in Springfield. The announcement is below.

Ladies please join us for an Amazing Evening.


“Where Joy and Sorrow Meet”


Thursday November 15, 2007

7:00 PM

First Baptist Church of Springfield Sanctuary


Praise and Worship

Special music by Carlett Fulcher

Guest speaker Jenny Wilkins


Hosted by the FBCS Women’s Council



A family's journey through childhood cancer... through treatment,
good times, laughter, loss, love, grief, and blessings... a journey
where joy and sorrow met.

And I didn't forget -- Izzy pics are just below in previous post!! ;)