St. Baldricks, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and MGH Yawkey Center

I can be very cynical about giving. I wonder if my few dollars actually help. You hear of charity organizations where the leadership seems overpaid, where money seems like its wasted, and priorities muddled.

But here we are in the Yawkey resource room that is funded by donations, writing on donated computers. I have just sent out Madeline's application to The Hole in the Wall Camp, a camp for children suffering from cancer funded by donations, and the music therapist, art therapist, acupuncture/ pressure person and massage therapist are all funded by donations, as are the movies Mady watches when it's going to be a long day at the Yawkey Center. Research money for cancer has significantly dried up in the US since the war, and other areas in the world are becoming the centers for excellence for cancer studies as a result.

So, can a few dollars help? Well, I think it's akin to building an art center. My few dollars aren't going to build an art center, but combined with so many others few dollars, well now we have enough to build something that together we can be proud of. And that goes for funding cancer research and cancer amenities. So I am asking that you spend 25$ on one of the following organizations. Many 25$ donations will help the cause and these organizations make a difference and are well run.

Tracie Munzert (shown above) will run the Boston Marathon in Mady's name and any money that you sponsor to her will go directly to serving the amenities for the Childrens oncology at MGH.
http://www.firstgiving.com/traciemunzert1

Kwan Kew Lai, will also run in Mady's name and money sponsored to her will go to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society:
http://www.active.com/donate/tntma/112thBostonMarathon2008KwanKewLai

And Nate Guzikowski, cousin to Patty and Chris, will shave his head and donations made to him will fund research for the Childrens Oncology Group through the St. Baldricks fund. The St. Baldrick’s fundraiser is on April 10th. Participants shave their heads to raise money every year around the world. After you get on their website, click on “Sponsor a Participant”, type in Nate Guzikowski. You’ll see him with hair!! Click on “Donate” and it will walk you through the donation process.
http://www.stbaldricks.org/index.html#

And please vote for funding cancer research with your tax dollars through the NIH. Funding has remained flat (which translates to a steep decline given inflation) for the past 5 years. We want to keep as many bright shining stars of hope out there in the form of cancer researchers, and to do that, grant funding is imperative.
Love, Chris