Awesome Parallel Parking

This small girl can park her bike, better than most adults, check the vid;

2010 Hospice Walk & Remember

I am posting this for my cousin Heather;

I do this walk every year, this will be my 4th year. Been doing this walk ever since my Mom passed away. She had Hospice the last year of her life, and I saw first hand just what these nurses and volunteers do for people near the end of their life. It is completely amazing and incredible. They are the most UNSELFISH people I have ever met. I watched them go through what we all went through, as Mom slowly slipped away from us. When we cried, they held us and cried with us. It touched me so much, that I knew I needed to do something to give back to them. In my efforts to find that "something" I discovered this walk. I also discovered that when Hospice comes into someone's life, it is based on a need, rather than an ability to pay. So many times, these volunteers, nurses..etc aren't getting paid like they need to be. They do this because it is a passion of theirs to be there to assist patients and their families through this difficult time, and to help the passing of a life go as smoothly and painlessly as possible. I know my Mom wasn't in any pain, and for that, I am ETERNALLY greatful. It was probably the first time through her 20 year illness where she wasn't suffering.

I said if anyone was interested in donating, I would so appreciate it. And I also posted that if anyone wanted to understand this better, I'd get them the info. I've gotten a couple of responses to my posting, so I figured I'd post the information now, to better help everyone understand how this works:

I do this walk...it's a 5k walk..nearly 3 miles. I have 3 people I usually walk in memory of: My Mom Karen, my husband Jon's Grandma Speary, and a 15 year old girl named Larain Johnson. This year, I have helpers walking with me. Haylee Williams, who was our neighbor girl at our house in Coral started walking with me last year in memory of her Grandma Sue. Sue passed away from a battle with breast cancer exactly 3 months after my Mom, and 1 day after Jon's Grandma Speary. Not a GREAT year for us all. This year, my step-son Cory is walking in memory of his Great Grandma Speary, and my son Shane and I are walking in memory of my Mom Karen and the 15 year old girl that I knew named Larain. Larain was diagnosed with lung cancer when she was a little over a year old. She lived with it until last May, just before the walk last year, when she passed away at 15. I came into contact with Larain via her Mom, whom my husband worked with. I was asked to make a quilt for Larain (for all of you who don't know, I am a quilter), so she had something to wrap up in when she went out to her Dr.'s visits, as that the disease had left her frail and always cold. So, I did so, and near the end of her life, her Mom had Pediatric Hospice for her. Anyway, I pick these 3 people to walk 3 miles in memory of every year now, and about this time every year, I get the info in the mail so I can sign up. I get a donation sheet, and I generally send it to work with Jon. He's made me over $500 total in the last several years. I make sure to let everyone know, that I understand times are tough. They are for Jon and I as well. My donation goal every year is $100. If I can get 10 people to donate $10 to me, cool, I've met my goal. Many times, Jon gets people who give him a $1 at a time for this. That's awesome too. I've gotten quarters, nickels, and dimes as well. There's no gift too small to me here. When I get cash, I or Jon, write the persons name down on the donation sheet, and then just before the walk I take all the cash and turn it into a money order, and it's made out to Hospice of Michigan. That money order is turned into Hospice the day of the walk, along with the donation sheet with everyone's name, address and phone number on it. Then, from there, I do the work. This is a passion of mine, and I won't miss this walk even if I'm in a wheelchair. My Mom suffered for 20 years of not being able to walk, 3 miles of walking isn't nearly as bad as the pain she endured. And 3 miles is nothing compared to what volunteers and nurses go through to be there for these patients and their families.

The money is then taken after the walk, and distributed around the State Of Michigan to various Hospice Organizations, where the need is greatest. If Hospice of Central Michigan needs most of it, that's where it goes. If Hospice of Southeastern Michigan needs it, it goes there. I know the first year I walked, Hospice of Muskegon County got new cars for their nurses so that they weren't using their own personal vehicles. I feel it is important for everyone to know this because many that I've talked to, think that it goes to our local chapter down here. It doesn't. It goes where it is needed most in the state. And how I look at it is this way: I saw what Hospice did for my family, I keep in mind that I have family all over this state, what if one of them needed Hospice and that chapter was dirt poor??? So I do my part to give back, for the future, and I do it in memory of those that I've loved and lost.

If anyone is interested in donating and sponsoring Shane & I in the walk, we have an online donation page. Donations are done using Verisign Secured...kinda like using PayPal for ebay. Donations will be credited to us at the walk. Our goal is to raise $100. So far, we have nothing. :o( This is the first year, that I haven't raised a dime by this time of the year. So I'm hoping we can meet our goal by the day of the walk...May 22, 2010. Both Shane and I are walking in memory of my Mom, but we are also going to be walking in Memory of Grandma Speary and Larain Johnson as well. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to drop me a line. If not, here's our webpage address for donations:


http://www.active.com/donate/walkandremember/HLyons7

Thank you.
Heather