Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Counting Our Blessings

This is a very happy time for me and my family as we prepare for the big 1-year birthday celebration.  It's also a time to reflect on all of our blessings, namely our health, and to keep in our thoughts and prayers those who are dealing with life's unexpected challenges.

My friend Christie's niece, Emily Mandell, is 16 months old.  While Emily and her parents were on vacation in Georgia last month, she began having seizures and was taken to the hospital in Savannah.  They found a tumor in her brain the size of a baseball and immediately operated to remove it.  They were able to remove about 50% of the tumor which was the good news.  The bad news was that the tumor was found to be related to an aggressive form of cancer, Atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (AT/RT).  

Emily and her family have since moved up to Boston where they have located a doctor who has had some success treating ATRTs.  But they are not through the woods yet.  

Login: emilyfamily  
Password: trotter

In addition to prayers and good wishes, Emily and her family are in need of financial support to pay for the cost of an apartment they can rent while Emily is undergoing chemo, as well as special cleaning treatments to keep the living space sterile for her.  The Mandell family has set up a trust fund for Emily through Bank of America.  This means that you can walk into any Bank of America location and make an anonymous donation into the account for Emily Mandell.  If you have any questions, let me know.  


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About Me

Arlington, VA, United States
Maestro and mom to a wee virtuoso

I'm #1804