Today is our little Miss Bailey's "2nd Angelversary". It is hard to believe that we have been without our precious little girl for two years. We miss her smile, her hugs, her passion for life. I will be writing more in the next couple of days. Right now Bryce is waiting for me to come to bed. He is not feeling well and wants mommy. Nothing better than being a mom!

Thanks to all of you who continue to honor our Bailey girl!

Love,

Kathy, Randy, Blake, Brooke and Bryce

Update on Audra

Here is an update on Audra from her mom Catherine. Thanks for the prayers. Please keep them coming as she has a long and stressful test tomorrow.

Good Evening from Memphis, TN!!!

We had a long day, but GREAT NEWS to follow.
Audr

a's tumor continues to shrink! PRAISE GOD!
We are now at over 30% tumor shrinkage (last time
we were told about 25%) The life of the tumor
continues to decrease into almost nothing. God is
sucking the life out of that ball of trouble. Thank you
Jesus! Dr. Merchant was so happy to see Audra and
continues to tell us how well she looks, walks, moves,
etc. His words were, "It couldn't be any better!" (Well,
we know the best would be that the tumor would be
gone...BUT, we also know that's not in His plan so we will
take 30% shrinkage) Her endocrine follow up today was
just a quick meeting with the doc; her huge test is tomorrow
morning from 7:15a.m. to 12:30p.m. California time. Through her labs drawn today, the measure of her height and weight, they can determine that she has dropped from the 50%ile, to the 25%ile in height and is on the curve to drop some more. The Endocrine doc believes she will definitely have to start growth hormone soon. Tomorrow's test will be another marker and proof for insurance. They do not like to pay for this unless there is positive and clear reasoning for it....understandable. Dr. Merchant, however, is extremely curious for the test results tomorrow, because he noted that Audra's cortisol is severely depleted and "sometimes" if you add cortisol only, it kicks the growth hormone into movement and starts it up again PLUS this could be a huge indicator on why she is so fatigued all of the time. Dr. Merchant will have a huge "say-so" in what actually takes place with Audra regarding growth hormone therapy, etc. I was soooo relieved to know that. We love that man and trust him with her life! She hasn't gained much strength in that left side like she did our last trip, but they are not concerned about this. It's all good for now; they still think she is doing excellent!

Have a great week!

Love,

Kathy

Prayers for Audra and Parker

Blake, Brooke, Bryce, Madeline holding Caleb, and Audra in Jan 2009

I am writing to ask for prayers for two special little children who have been fighting cancer for way too long!!!!!!!!!!!

Audra is one of Bailey's buddies from the beginning of her therapy. She left to go to St. Jude's in Memphis today and will face a battery of test to see how well she is doing since finishing her brain radiation for her brain tumor over a year ago. Some of the test she faces tomorrow would be hard for us adults to face so please pray for comfort and strength for both Audra and her mom Catherine.

I included part of Audra's caringbridge posting and her website address so that you can read for yourself.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/audragracekoelewyn

Good Evening Friends and Family! Sunday at 6:30 a.m. , Audra, my mom and I will fly out from FAT and arrive in Memphis at 1:51p.m. (Memphis time, so 11:51 our time) Monday Audra has labs drawn, her MRI, the reading of her MRI, some therapy assessments, etc. Tuesday she will have a rigorous endocrine/insulin test in which she fasts and is injected with natural stimulants that help her body produce growth hormone and cortisol to get an accurate measure of possible deficiencies. The sooner we catch the beginning of any deficiencies, the quicker we can get her on the road to normalcy in these areas. The procedure of the testing is scary to me as the "possible" side effects during the test are not fun. So, please pray that none of the side effects hit her and she is able to sail through. Also, pray that they can find veins. It is such a struggle to find Audra's veins and they have to find one in each arm Tues to draw from and infuse into. Yikes! I will be updating Sunday to let you know we arrived fine. Then, I will update Monday evening with the results of the MRI. We aren't anticipating anything but good news. However, we have noted a slight decline in her left side strength; we are praying it's because she is very tired from the beginning of school, etc. We have also taken a short break from all therapies to help her get used to the schedule of school this year. We will start therapies up again upon our return from St. Jude. This, too, may be a possible reason for the decline in left side strength. Anyhooo, pray for peace and calm in our hearts as we move towards the MRI. We cannot explain the feeling we have as we move toward the scan. It's very nerve-wracking to say the least. Kevin wishes he could be there with us. We are going to try our hardest to get Dr. Merchant to schedule the next appts. in June and Dec. so he can come. Okay! Thanks for all of your prayers...traveling mercies, et. They are much appreciated and needed. God bless all of you. Have a great week. Memphis....HERE WE COME! Love, Catherine and Krew


Our second little friend who has been fighting cancer for over 7 years is a precious young boy named Parker Fritsch. After fighting leukemia, having a bone marrow transplant and going through many side-effect of that, he has now been diagnosed with skin cancer! He is only 10 years old. It makes me sick to think about all that he and his family have already endured and now this! Please keep him in your prayers.

http://www.caringbridge.org/ca/parkerfritsch/

God bless all of you. I will be updating with other info in a couple of days.

Remember to hug your kids!

Love,

Kathy

Remember: Awareness = CURE

"Faith is a mindset that expects God to act"

Thanks to all of you who took the time to vote on "The Doctors" in favor of a show about Childhood Cancer. Because of the overwhelming response they are going to do a show about it!!! I am so excited about this door opening and pray that this will just be the beginning in raising awareness through the media. Below I have published their response.

Childhood Cancer Awareness Show in Development

Posted by AndrewScher to Pediatric/Parenting, 1 day ago

Hello everyone,

Thank you to won2xx, MajorC, LVMYBOYS2003 and many others for your suggestions about producing a show on childhood cancers. We know this is a devastating illness that affects young children as well as their families. Knowing that cancer is the leading cause of death by disease among children in the U.S., and because so many of you voted for this idea, we are currently doing research to see how we can develop this idea for TV. Keep checking this site for updates.

We love hearing your ideas, so keep submitting them!

Andrew Scher
Co-executive producer

This is definitely a great start but I have a couple of favors to ask all of you. First, if you have any contacts in the NFL, NBA, Media, big businesses, etc. who would be willing to talk about the possibility of them supporting Childhood Cancer Awareness, please let me know. The group called "People Against Childhood Cancer" which is basically made up of parents and family members of children with cancer, are trying to get the NFL on board to support Childhood Cancer in September 2010 like they currently support Breast Cancer Awareness. "Go Pink"! You can contact me at nevergiveupbr@hotmail.com. Please continue to pass along this blog address too! Secondly, please pray for a cure for cancer!!! I lost my dad to cancer only three months before Bailey was originally diagnosed. It touches everyone's lives. We need a CURE!

Let's keep this moving!!!!

Philippians 4:6-7- Don't worry about anything, instead pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank him for his answer. If you do this you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus.

Love,

Kathy and family

They

WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT!!!!!!

Bailey enjoying a day at the locks with her cousins who visited her in Seattle. (Thanks to Lynette Johnson from http://soulumination.org/home.html who took all of the amazing black and white photos of Bailey and our family. She was at the park with another customer but took a few minutes to snap these photos.



Bailey after transplant wearing her "Jesus' Little Warrior" hat. (Thanks Marsha)




Please, Please, Please take the time to read this and pass it along. Also please pass along my blog to everyone you know

http://baileyslegacy.blogspot.com/

A few days ago my mom called to tell me that the teenage son of a friend from high school just died from cancer. He went in to get checked about some pain in his abdomen...within a few weeks he passed away. My heart breaks every time I get an email from a friend asking for prayers for a child and their family who are losing their battle against cancer. I get these emails way to often!! Parents who have lost a child to cancer soon find out the reality of why we still don't have a cure for our precious children. Most people do not want to hear about this...it is too hard. Despite the amazing amount of love and support that we received while Bailey fought against this monster and the continued tributes to our precious girl's memory...I find that when I want to talk about raising awareness about Childhood Cancer...people have a hard time listening. It is too much for them to think about. Well, I can't stop thinking about it...ever! When I hear about yet another child fighting for their life, it almost makes me physically sick. Watching my precious child fight so hard for over four years to live and then it isn't good enough, how do you forget that? How do you ever forget watching her go through endless procedures (bone marrow aspirates, spinals, blood draws, days and days of vomiting and diarrhea, TOTAL BODY RADIATION) and yet it wasn't enough to have her here to help me celebrate my birthday today. Not that many years ago people didn't want to talk about breast cancer and today...pink is everywhere! Please help us to get the same awareness for Childhood Cancer.

Awareness=Change=CURE

Pleas read this letter that was written by Jim Lipski, dad to JJ (www.icouldbeyourchild.org).

I sent the below to the Wall Street Journal a couple of days ago as a hope for an OpEd piece. To date, I haven't heard anything back from them. In as such and you have the desire, please feel free to use whatever or all portions of it for your use.

We protect and value them as our most important assets. We clothe, feed and give them shelter. We educate them. We pray they can attain and aspire to a level in society higher than what we achieved. We see in them a future, dreams yet fulfilled, and the innocence long lost to adults. We buy car seats that offer an added level of protection while in our travels, a crib so that they do not fall while they sleep, and helmets when they ride their bikes. We keep a watchful eye on them while at play and an even more watchful eye while in crowds. We screen what they watch on TV and ensure they are protected from internet predators. Most of us would, without hesitation, give up our lives to save a child we don't even know from a burning building. Our society views a crime against a child to be the most egregious and is dealt with the stiffest of punishments. Even hardened criminals view sexual deviants of children with no toleration. They pull from and give us a love that is beyond measure. The raised arms saying "hold me" or the falling asleep on your shoulder. They give us complete trust.

So, why is it then, when the topic of pediatric cancer comes up, we turn away from the child? Is it that the mere thought of your child or grandchild attaining cancer as being too terrorizing, painful or unimaginable? We cry out demanding action for cancer treatment and donate millions of dollars every year for our breasts, prostate and other forms of adult cancer. The government places additional billions for research for these very same cancers. Cancers that, for the most part, have known causes and life giving treatments.

Yet, our voices remain silent for our children. Cancers that are entirely different than that of adults. Cancers that, but with few exceptions, have no known cause. Cancers that grow in our children's bodies that are not brought on by quality of life or age induced. Cancers that have a lower survivability rate than that of adult cancers. Some of these cancers having no known cure. Cancers that are grossly underfunded or researched.

We, as a society, remain silent. In this silence, we have violated the very trust the children have bestowed upon us and to which we accept. Instead, we turn away and refuse to believe in the possibility that our own child can acquire cancer. We deny and ignore it... Then, if your child is diagnosed with a cancer, the unimaginable is now a reality. Refusing to believe is no longer too painful or terrorizing to imagine. The thought process of "it can't happen to my child" is shattered. You can no longer reside in the state of denial. You cry out "Why isn't there a treatment"? "What do you mean there isn't a cure"? "I don't understand how this is possible"! It's simple. We refuse to acknowledge or protect our most precious assets. Instead, we focus on ourselves and do not raise a voice for those that cannot.

Children get cancer. It is a fact that each male child in the United States stands a 1 in 300 chance of attaining cancer by the age of 19. A female child, 1 in 333 chance. Compare this to a 20-30 year old women's chance of getting breast cancer at 1 in 1,837. Do you know that there are over 120 different type of childhood cancers and yet, all 120+ receive less than 3% of the budget allotted to the National Institute of Health for research whereas, breast cancer alone receives 12% and prostate cancer receives 9%. So, one has to wonder... when did we start placing women and men in the lifeboats before children?

Bet, you all know what the pink ribbon signifies and that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. Did anyone even know that September was "Childhood Cancer Awareness Month" or do you even know what the representative color for childhood cancer is? I'll give you a hint. It's related to our most precious of metals... gold. Did you know that the average age for a child to get cancer is approximately 6. A women getting breast cancer is approximately 61. The average age for a man's chance at getting prostate cancer? 70. A life time multiplied by 10 and 11. Do you know that the 5 year survivability rate for childhood cancer is 78%? That means 22 out of every 100 children do not survive 5 years! 5 year survivability rate for breast cancer? 98%. 2 out of every 100 women. Prostate cancer. 99%. 1 out of every 100. A multitude of 20 children to every adult. And yet... nothing about the kids do we speak. The news does not report it. Corporation does not support it. Parents refuse to believe it.

The silence is deafening and this silence is killing kids.


Randy and I refuse to let everything Bailey went through be for naught. God has brought us through this and because of him we have the strength to continue to fight this fight until no more children have to lose their lives to this horrible to disease. Please help us!


Psalms 33:18-19 "The Lord is close to those whose hearts are breaking; he rescues those who are humbly sorry for their sins. The good man does not escape all troubles-he has them too. But the Lord helps him in each and every one.

God bless,

Kathy

Eat at Chili's on September 28, 2009

Ernesto, Jorge, & Randy getting ready for the Cancer Awareness Race in Modesto. This was Randy's first race ever.

Bryce, Brooke, Randy & Bailey with Ron, Jack & Jamie on the rooftop of our apartment in Seattle right before we came home in September 2007. The kids put the eyeballs all over Uncle Ron's face them took him all over the building "showing him off"! As you can tell from the huge smiles on their faces, they had a blast! Great memories of Bailey enjoying every moment of every day. Something we should all learn to do!

Just a quick reminder! If you eat at Chili's on Monday, September 28....100% of the profits will go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital! We have a very close little friend Audra from here in California, who was treated there and is doing great! They do a lot of good research and cutting edge treatments there, so if you can, please help support them.

Thanks!

Kathy

Visit Cold Stone Creamery on Sept 24 to Support Make-A-Wish

Bailey with her Cold Stone Creamery cake at her Make-A-Wish Party where they told her that she would be swimming with dolphins!

Cold Stone Creamery® is dishing up free ice cream in exchange for a donation to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, an organization that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions. This September all Cold Stone Creamery locations nationwide will host a month-long fund-raising celebration, culminating with the eighth annual “World’s Largest Ice Cream Social” on Thursday, Sept. 24,2009 from 5-8 p.m.

Cold Stone Creamery has supported the Make-A-Wish Foundation since 2002, generating $3.2 million in donations. This year, 5-year-old Make-A-Wish® kid Jack teamed with Cold Stone Creamery’s Tastemaster™ Ray Karam to create his own ice cream Creation to commemorate the alliance. Jack was named “Junior Tastemaster” as he created his special Creation with sweet cream ice cream mixed with brownie, sprinkles and caramel.

During the month, every Cold Stone store will sell customizable paper wish stars for $1 each, which will adorn the walls of the store, to benefit the local Make-A-Wish chapter.The celebration will reach its peak during the “World’s Largest Ice Cream Social,” where guests will receive a 3-ounce portion of Jack’s Creation when making a donation to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

“Ice Cream and children is a simple combination, but throw in community support, and now we have a magical experience,” said Dan Beem, president of Cold Stone Creamery. “We are proud to have all of our Cold Stone stores nationwide coming together to serve ice cream to benefit this great cause year after year.” To help celebrate the “World’s Largest Ice Cream Social,” Jack will be at Cold Stone Creamery’s flagship store in Times Square New York. With Jack, World Wrestling Entertainment® (WWE®) Superstars the Hart Dynasty™ will also be at the Times Square Cold Stone location to help serve guests during the event. As part of WWE’s Make-A-Wish Road to WrestleMania26, WWE Superstars will make special appearances at a Detroit and Chicago Cold Stone location to help promote the month-long fundraiser.

Ice cream lovers and supporters of the Make-A-Wish Foundation are encouraged to visit their local Cold Stone Creamery on Thursday, Sept. 24, and throughout the month to participate in the fund-raising festivities.

For more information visit http://curechildhoodcancer.ning.com/events/eat-cold-stone-ice-cream-to

Please Vote! Please Vote!

Bryce was so proud to be the first one to climb on his big sis's wall!!!

A huge thanks to all of you who put your time, energy and love into making Bailey's Wall of Hope a reality. Many people in our community came together to honor our precious Little Miss Bailey by having this climbing wall put up at her school with this awesome sign honoring her and her
"Never Give Up" spirit!

Please take a moment to help bring Childhood Cancer Awareness to the national media. There is a show called, "The Doctors". It's creator and executive producer is Jay McGraw, his dad is Dr. Phil. They are asking people to vote for what they want to see on the show. Childhood Cancer Awareness is back in first place and we want to stay there! Please vote! You can vote EVERY DAY, so please take a few minutes each day to log in and vote for all of the childhood cancer issues. Here is how you do it. It is really easy and if they get enough of us voting they won't be able to ignore us!

1 - go to http://www.thedoctorstv.com/produce/home (you need to sign in...see below*)
2 - go to "vote for ideas"
3 - go to "most popular"
4 - vote for "Childhood Cancer Awareness Month" and any others that are related to Childhood Cancer

*Note: If you get a message when you try to vote that you haven't logged in or registered, it is because they will send you a "registration confirmation" to your email. You have to click on the link to confirm before you can vote.

Jeremy Camp Concert-Update

I don't know how many of you tried to get the $15 tickets but after many phone calls this morning I found out it was only in selected areas. Right now for Modesto you can only get them from itickets for the $37.50. Sorry for passing along confusing information...I was just excited to share this with you since he is such an amazing Christian artist.

Have a great day!

Kathy

Help us Find a Cure

Childhood Cancer Awareness Day

For the first 200 people who join us, we will have free hotdogs, chips & drinks!

Where: Pioneer Park in Newman, CA
When: September 12, 2009
Time: 12:00-4:00 pm

Why: *Each year in the U.S. over 12,500 children are diagnosed with cancer. *Cancer remains the #1 cause of death by disease of our children-more than Cystic Fibrosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Asthma, and AIDS combined. *Each year 3,000 children die from cancer.

Awareness=Change=CURE

Event sponsored by

Bailey's Treasure Box
www.comfortingkids.org

&

Gold Rush Cure
www.goldrushcure.org

*Come help us make cards for children who are in the hospital*

Jeremy Camp, Natalie Grant & Bebo Norman Tickets only $15 dollars for a limited time!

Hi,

FYI. I just got this and thought some of you might like the heads-up about these tickets. They are regularly $25.50-$37.50. I don't know what Calvary Worship Temple Center in Modesto will be selling them for or even if they are selling them. I tried to call them today but no one was there. Beardsley said if they sell them it will not be until after Sept 14th. I'm afraid they might be sold out by then.

Anyway, Jeremy was one of Bailey's favorite singers. He does such a great job sharing God's message and his personal testimony through his music. Plus he is just fun to listen to. Bailey felt a connection with him because when he was a newlywed his first wife passed away from ovarian cancer(she was 20-22 years old). A lot of his music has to do with how he came to God during this time instead of running away from him. He is a great Christian role model with a bit of an edgy look. He is going to be in Modesto on November 15, 2009...Bailey's "2-year angelversary" is on November 13. Coincidence...I think not! Our God is an awesome God! Natalie Grant is the artist who sings, "I'm in Better Hands Now"...the song that came blaring on the radio with those exact words when we started our car to go to Bailey's funeral. Coincidence...I think not!

You can click on the link below to see if they will be in a town close to you. If you have never been to a Christian Concert, this is a great one to go to. You won't regret it.

God bless,

Kathy

---

$15 Concert Tickets! Courtesy of the Gospel Music Channel, beginning Saturday, Sept. 5th at 10 am (ET) and going through Wednesday, Sept. 9th at 11:59 pm, you can purchase $15 tickets to Jeremy Camp's Speaking Louder Than Before
5-DAY-ONLY SPECIAL PRICE!

--- On Fri, 9/4/09, Jeremy Camp wrote: From: Jeremy Camp Subject: "Speaking Louder Than Before Tour" 5 Day Sale To: "Kathryn Rocha" Date: Friday, September 4, 2009, 2:13 PM Hello Kathryn Rocha ! $15 Concert Tickets! 5-DAY-ONLY SPECIAL PRICE! SPECIAL LIMITED-TIME LABOR DAY SPECIAL FOR JEREMY CAMP'S SPEAKING LOUDER THAN BEFORE TOUR!! Presented by the Gospel Music Channel If you don't have your tickets yet for Jeremy's Speaking Louder Than Before Tour, now is the perfect time! Courtesy of the Gospel Music Channel, beginning Saturday, Sept. 5th at 10 am (ET) and going through Wednesday, Sept. 9th at 11:59 pm, you can purchase $15 tickets to Jeremy Camp's Speaking Louder Than Before Tour!! You don't want to miss this opportunity to get tickets to Jeremy's first headlining tour in nearly two years - featuring special guests like reigning Dove Award Female Vocalist of the Year Natalie Grant and critically-acclaimed singer/songwriter Bebo Norman! & nbsp; Take advantage of this limited-time special price, while supplies last!! Click here to purchase tickets for the concert nearest you! JeremyCamp.com Jeremy Camp Camp.com Buy Jeremy's Music on iTunes Twitter.com/JeremyCamp JeremyCamp.TypePad.com

Let's Get Faxing! All day September 3, 2009

Bailey(leukemia), Miranda(aplastic anemai), Audra (brain tumor)

Sarah(ALL),Caleb(ALL), Bailey(ALL),Miranda (aplastic anemai), Karigan (ALL)
(ALL is Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia)

All of these children are either cancer kids or siblings (ROCK Program)

In Jan 2009 PAC2 succeeded in having its question on “Increased Funding for Childhood Cancer” included in the Citizen’s Briefing Book presented to the incoming President. We’ve followed up with written letters and emails. He gets 10,000 to 15,000 emails and letters every day.

But…he only gets 1,000 faxes a day…..so….
One day…one Time….let’s double that number, triple that number….we can stand out, be heard, if we all do it together!

Let’s simply fax the President and ask for a September ceremony in the Rose Garden honoring children during National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. All on ONE day. All together.

When – September 3, 2009 – all day
What - A short note faxed to 202-456-2461.
(send a free fax at http://www.faxzero.com/ or http://www.myfax.com/free)

SAMPLE TEMPLATE: Quickly customize the first line of the following request. Add your name and fax it off.

RE: Nation Childhood Cancer Awareness Rose Garden Ceremony Request

Dear President Obama:
As the {FATHER, MOTHER, GRANDPARENT, AUNT, UNCLE, BROTHER, SISTER, COUSIN, FRIEND, DOCTOR, NURSE, DENTIST, PASTOR, TEACHER, PRINCIPAL} of {A/SEVERAL} childhood cancer victim(S) I am writing to request that you hold a ceremony in the Rose Garden in honor of September National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.

Every year 12,500 children are diagnosed with cancer, and it is the leading cause of death by disease for children before age 20. 1 in 300 children are diagnosed with cancer before age 20 yet funding and awareness is woefully inadequate. This is not a “special interest group”. We are a large, diverse grassroots community passionate about providing all our children a stronger voice and assuring them equal access to research funding for Childhood Cancer. Our question on Increased Funding for Childhood Cancer was included in the Citizen’s Briefing Book presented to you by your Transition Team, question #5 in Health Care.

The awareness resulting from a ceremony would be a wonderful way to show your commitment to our future, our children. It would be an appropriate time to demonstrate that commitment by announcing full funding of the Caroline Pryce Walker Conquer Childhood Cancer Act. Thank you.

Warmest Regards,
YOUR NAME HERE

September 12th-- Childhood Cancer Awareness Day Event

Bailey & Austin--May 13, 2007...They had a special connection from the first time they met!

Two little angels Bailey( 8 years old) & Austin (1 year old). Both went to heaven in 2007. No child should every die from cancer. We need to find a cure!!!!



Brooke, Bryce and Blake with Austin's sisters Megan & Elise (photos taken by Austin's dad, Matt). Our families were able to get together in April 2009 and share our memories of our two precious little ones.

Family Picture April 26, 2009

It is hard to believe that it has almost been 2 years since our baby girl went to be with our Lord. Randy and I have taken that time to try to regroup, heal, and focus on our three other precious children. We look back at all that transpired during Bailey's four year battle against cancer and are amazed at how God watched over us. We feel blessed to still be standing. We know how many families don't survive these types of trials and believe that without all of your prayers and God's grace we wouldn't have made it through. God gave us the knowledge that we needed, when we needed it, but blinded us to so much that would have overwhelmed us at the time. I thank God that we were truly able to live day to day and enjoy the time that we had with Miss Bailey.

We both have had to learn to say "no" to things that we feel are stretching us too thin and are not where we feel our time is best spent. I think, in life, we all have our paths that we are meant to follow. We both have wanted to continue fighting for a cure for childhood cancer and reaching out to other families who face challenges similar to ours. In the last year, we slowly started to become involved in these areas. We had hoped to start a foundation in honor of Bailey at some point. Once again, God has placed amazing people in our path. To be able to become a part of Comforting Kids and have them embrace the idea of Bailey's Treasure Box was an answer to our prayers. (You have no idea how much money, time and effort are needed to start a non-profit organization.) Thank you so much for your huge hearts! You have never seen such hard working women.(even in heels!ha!ha!) Comforting Kids just had their 2nd annual fundraiser which was once again very successful thanks to our great community.

Another exciting bit of news that I want to tell you about is the partnership between NCLUSD's After-School Program, Bailey's Treasure Box, and Gold Rush Cure. We are going to be working with the kids to get them involved in raising awareness and funds for our local children with long-term illnesses and for Childhood Cancer Research. Both Randy and I are still approached by kids who want to either talk about Bailey, ask questions about her disease or let us know how she impacted their lives. We are excited to harness this interest and put it towards helping others in our community.

Okay, so here is our latest plan. On Thursday, as Dean Harris (he has been so supportive) was interviewing me for a story he is doing about September being Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, he asked me if there were any events planned in the area. I told him none that I knew of. Fast forward to Friday around 2:15 pm right before I need to pick up the kids…I have this thought of “why not have one here in Newman?!”. I make a few calls and quick visits and guess what…we are having an event! (Thanks for your help Kristal!) So here is some sketchy info…I will keep you posted as things get finalized. We will be having a “Childhood Cancer Awareness Day” on September 12th @ Pioneer Park. We are hoping to have a “Concert in the Park” with hotdogs, chips, water, and information about Childhood Cancer, Bailey’s Treasure Box, and Gold Rush Cure. I am in the process of contacting some local bands and musicians to see if they would like to volunteer their time to come out and play at our event. If any of you would like to help please let me know. It is going to be a simple event this year. I didn’t want to wait another year to do this. I hope you’ll be able to come. Bring your blankets and chairs!

Thanks,

Kathy and Randy

Candlelighters' Statistics about Childhood Cancer

I often wonder what she was thinking about. This was just a couple of weeks before her transplant. (3 1/2 years since her battle began)

Hi,

Thanks to all of you for once again supporting our family by signing the petitions!!!! You're awesome! Read some of the messages. So many people are touched by cancer. Until people like you and me get involved and make our voices heard, things are not going to change for these precious children or anyone with cancer. We need the masses to stand up and finally say, "this is not acceptable". Even the doctors agree that not enough is being done but their hands are tied. Without money to fund research, we will remain at a stand still with childhood cancer. Despite very aggressive therapies that approach the limits of tolerability for the child, the overall survival rate for childhood cancer has remained unchanged since 1998. One in four children who are diagnosed with cancer in the U.S. will die within five years of their diagnosis, and 30% of those that do survive have severe side effects, including cognitive deficits, kidney failure, heart failure, and secondary cancers caused from the traditional toxic treatments. Because of the high level of toxicity associated with many current treatments and the plateau in survivorship rates, future success is dependent upon the development of new therapeutic approaches.

The last couple of days I have spent a lot of time on different sites collecting information and statistics about childhood cancer. I am including a link to Candlelighters that includes information that nobody talks about concerning childhood cancer. Candlelighters’ mission is to address the needs of families through programs that emphasize information, advocacy, awareness, and research. Please take a moment to visit this site...watch the short video. Then do something! Tell a friend, send out an email, make a donation...just talk. If you haven't forwarded the petition from my last blog...please do. http://www.candlelighters.org/Research/WhyResearchisNeeded/tabid/408/Default.aspx.

For too long, no one has wanted to talk about kid's having cancer much less dying from it. I always felt lucky that Bailey had the "good cancer" because Standard Risk Leukemia (ALL) has an 85 % cure rate and because she responded so well to her therapy statistically...she should never have relapsed. On the other hand, I know some children who, statistically speaking, shouldn't be here and they still are. My point is...we need more research specifically targeting pediatric cancer because the fact that over 20% of kids who get cancer...die from it. Others face a life time of health issues. United...we can make a difference. Please join us in eliminating childhood cancer, the #1 killer of our children by disease.

Thank you,

Kathy and family

Help Us Raise Awareness

This is right before what we thought was going to be her "last bone marrow aspiration and spinal". Our life was finally going to be normal again after two years of uncertainty. Only 10 months later, she relapsed.

For the sake of Pediatric Cancer Awareness I am now officially becoming a blogger!

Our family has become involved with two non-profit organizations that are extremely important to us. The first is called, "Comforting Kids Foundation". www.comfortingkids.org A local group of amazing people started this non-profit organization in order to raise funds for local hospital's "Child Life Programs". The Child Life Staff are the wonderful people who help to distract, entertain, and comfort the children while they are in hospital. All of the TV’s, DVD’s, video games, toys, prizes, arts & crafts, teddy bears, etc. that are used at the hospitals are donated by outside sources. Last year Comforting Kids donated a van full of items that Childrens Hospital of Central California in Madera had requested, in honor of our precious Bailey. After seeing the passion and commitment of this foundation’s board members & supporters, I knew I wanted to be a part of it. I had an idea that involved reaching out to our local Westside children (Newman, Gustine, Patterson, Hilmar, etc.) who face long-term illnesses. The group loved the idea and “Bailey’s Treasure Box” became a part of Comforting Kids and an answer to my prayers. This is a perfect tribute to the life that Bailey lived during her four-year battle with cancer. She loved to give special treasures and treats to those precious children who she may have known for many months or just met that day. Check out their website and see the great things they are doing. Let me know if you want to get involved.

The second organization is called Gold Rush Cure. www.goldrushcure.org (It will be up in Mid-September) and is extremely important to us because 100% of the donations will go to pediatric cancer research and awareness. It was started by Sandy & Gary Barker from Laguna Niguel. Their son Christian passed away in Dec 2007 after receiving two bone marrow transplants. We met them up in Seattle and became good friends. She has already gone back to Washington D.C. five times to lobby for more funding for pediatric cancer because it is so underfunded.

I wanted to share a few statistics with you that no one wants to talk hear. “My Mission” is to get people talking because that will bring…awareness…change….cure!!!! Please share this information with others!

-Childhood cancer is the #1 killer disease of our children, more than from asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies, and pediatric AIDS combined

- 1 in 300 children will be diagnosed with cancer before age 20

- Each year 3,000 children die, and 35,000+ are in treatment

- The National Cancer Institute's (NCI) federal budget was $4.6 billion. Of that, breast cancer received 12%, prostate cancer received 7%, and all 12 major groups of pediatric cancers combined received less than 3%.

- Two-thirds of children who do survive cancer face at least one chronic health condition because of the amount of chemo they receive (3-4 times what an adults receives). One quarter of survivors face a late-effect from treatment that is classified as severe or life-threatening. Late-effects of treatment can include heart damage, second cancers, lung damage, infertility, cognitive impairment, growth deficits, hearing loss, and more. It is becoming increasingly apparent that childhood cancer "is for life." Late effects from either the disease process or aggressive treatment regimens are given at a time of life when children have growing bodies and developing brains. As such, patterns of late-effects include disabilities, chronic health conditions, and even subsequent battles with additional cancer. It is imperative that all survivors of childhood cancer receive on-going monitoring and continued physical and psychosocial care throughout their adult lives.

You can make a difference. You can help. Please go onto the following website and sign a petition that will help bring more awareness and hopefully funding for pediatric cancer. http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/curechildhoodcancer Please sign and pass it on.

Please check back because we have more to share with you. I will try to post updates at least once a week to let you know what is going on. Next post, I will give you an update on our family and add some pictures too.

God bless all of you,

Kathy and family

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

I have been wanting to do this for quite awhile. Now with September approaching us and my passion to get the word out about childhood cancer, it just seemed like it was finally time to take the next step and set up this blog. I have become involved with two great organizations that I will be sharing with you next time. Please check back soon and help me spread the word about the need for more funding for childhood cancer. We need to find a cure...soon!

God Bless,

Kathy