I am so very, very lucky.

I’m lucky, because I’m the daughter of a cancer survivor.  Mom was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in December of 1982.

It’s thanks to cancer research and great medical support that I still have my mom.  Without that extensive research, this photo never would have been taken:

Christmas, 1983 ~ Mom had just finished all her treatments

This photo never would have happened, either:

Mother’s Day, 2001

I know I’m lucky, because I have friends who were not so lucky.

Mom and the boys singing songs around the “campfire” in the living room

We need more research, so little girls and boys don’t have to grow up without mommies or daddies, and mommies and daddies don’t have to lose their babies.

Mom and Dad ~ April, 2010

And so more couples can celebrate their 42nd wedding anniversaries – and beyond – together.

Next month, I’m traveling to California to see a friend graduate with her master’s degree and to join her at the Relay For Life.  I’ve set a modest fundraising goal – $100 – but I need your help to get there.  Will you please donate?  Whether it’s $5, $15, $50 or $500, it all makes a difference.  Please click here or on the Relay For Life button to give what you can.  Thanks so much!