Martha in Anastasia Krupnik

Martha's been rehearsing for a play version of Lois Lowry's Anastasia Krupnik over the past month. If you'd like to come out and support her and support the local arts, check out the flyer below. 

LFR Fundraising Goal Exceeded!

Wow! In three short weeks financial support has poured in from near -- most of the 55 runners, walkers, and bikers who came out last Saturday for our fundraiser fun run live in the core city of Holland -- and far -- Stockholm, Mexico City, Mumbai... 

Thanks to your generosity we have met and exceeded our required fundraising goal of $2,250 to volunteer at Retreat 9 of the Lighthouse Family Retreats this summer! 

While we won't know who our assigned retreat family is until we arrive in Florida in mid-July, we have begun praying, and ask you to join us, for the family as they are living through childhood cancer. 

We'll keep you updated as our trip nears. Thanks for your continued support of our family! We feel so blessed to have you as a part of our community. 

LFR 2013: An opportunity to give back

Dear Friends and Family,

Many of you followed us on our journey of childhood cancer. As you are well aware, from Chloe’s admission to Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital up to this very day, we have been surrounded by many blessings. While the journey was difficult at times, we look back and see how the experience opened our eyes to a new reality. We see aspects of life differently than we did before cancer. We find ourselves giving thanks for the ways it strengthened our faith, our outlook, our very selves.

One of the experiences for which we give thanks is Lighthouse Family Retreat (LFR). LFR is an organization whose mission is to serve children with cancer and their families at a seaside family retreat, to help them to laugh, restore family relationships and find hope in God. At the one year anniversary of Chloe’s surgery, we surprised our kids with a trip to a Lighthouse Family Retreat in Florida. When we arrived, we were introduced to our volunteer family, the Snells, who made sure that we had everything we could possibly want or need (including doing our laundry!). The Snell family, along with many other LFR volunteers, helped us to kick back and play for a week. We were served meals, invited to the beach, treated to a flash mob, dance parties, an Italian dinner, a date night and a low country boil. As parents, we were able to connect with other parents who could relate to our journey. The kids were able to play - sports, games, swimming. Our only responsibility that week was to have fun. That we did!

Our week at Lighthouse was an amazing experience, one we would like to repeat. Only this time we would like to give back. We would like to be the volunteer family. We would like to give a family the opportunity to laugh, love and live carefree for a week this summer! We have signed up to volunteer July 14-20. In order to do this, we need to raise $2,250.00.

We tend to be problem solvers. It is hard to accept help. Chloe’s cancer taught us that we cannot and should not do this alone. We would like to ask for your support as we serve. We have already begun praying for the family with whom we will be paired. We ask that you join us in praying for that family. We also ask that you would pray for us, that we would have giving hearts and the attitude of servants. We pray that our experience might help another family through their difficult time. In addition, if possible, we would appreciate it if you would be willing to support us financially as we serve.

If you are led to support us financially, any amount that you contribute is greatly appreciated. As volunteers, we are asked to raise $750 per adult and $250 per child to serve on a retreat. There is no cost to the families that we serve, and it costs Lighthouse $3500 per retreat family to cover the expenses involved to provide them a place of fun and rejuvenation. Specifically the funding provides housing, meals and retreat activities such as a luau, pool games, arts and crafts, night out for the parents, devotionals, a talent show and more.

You can make your tax deductible donation by visiting our donation page, by clicking the link at the top of our family blog, or by sending a check to the Lighthouse office at 45 Technology Parkway S, Suite 225 Norcross, GA 30092. Please indicate that the check is towards our volunteer support. We need to raise our support by July 1, 2013.

Thanks for your continued support, prayers, and encouragement as we walk this journey,

All is well

Ultrasound and chest X-rays were both clear and we were home in time for the Kinderparade. It's Tulip Time here in Holland, after all. 

Here's a snapshot from yesterday's Volksparade.

Scans tomorrow

Our hearts are with the Emerson family in the passing of their beloved Oliver yesterday. Oliver was diagnosed about a year before Chloe, but ended up with a more difficult road than the one we traveled. Knowing Derek and Mary Ann from both Crossroad Chapel and Mary Ann and Oliver's participation in the East K-7 Garden Club, they were welcoming, familiar faces who happened to be at the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital when Chloe underwent her first surgery and joined us for a meal. Derek's words in Oliver's CarePage updates continually inspired us to look at the bigger picture of faith in the midst of suffering. Should our family's journey with childhood cancer ever take a turn for the worse, I hope and pray we will walk it with as much faith, love, hope, and grace as the Emerson family.

On a much more minor note, Chloe's heading for her quarterly scans tomorrow. Your prayers are always appreciated. 

Scans are clear!

We spent the day at the DeVos Children's Hospital for Chloe's quarterly scans today. It was all great news -- CT scan is clear, blood work is great, check-up is excellent. All an answer to prayer. 

It was pointed out to us that this appointment marked one year since Chloe finished up chemo and had her port removed.  Thanks for continuing to travel this journey with us!

A few photos from the day...

Watching The Incredibles while waiting to get her IV for the day.

Heading into the CT scan.

A few prizes to make the day a little more enjoyable.

Scans next week

Chloe has her next set of scans next Monday, February 25th. There's no reason for concern, we're confident that everything will be clear and good. Yet, we know that there are no guarantees.

Early in Chloe's cancer journey, someone shared the blog of the Merrick family with us. Their daughter, Daisy, had been diagnosed with a Wilm's Tumor, like Chloe, but her tumor was more progressed when it was removed and cancer returned for Daisy several times over the next few years. We joined their community in hoping and praying that Daisy would be restored to full health. This weekend, Daisy went to be with Jesus.

A few weeks ago, Daisy's dad, Britt, preached the following sermon at their church. In it, he described the difficult emotional journey he'd been on and the lessons he'd learned. What struck me most was when he realized that while he was desperately seeking God, wanting to know why this was happening to his daughter and family, God was distant. Peace finally came to him as he remembered that God is always present with us no matter what is happening and we need to trust God with the outcome.

In the end, no matter our circumstances in life, isn't that all we can do?

flashbacks

i've been experiencing some flashbacks lately
it sounds scarier than it is,
it is just a memory,
accompanied by a flood of emotion.*

these intense memories are unsettling,
jarring.
while my heart is flooded with sadness,
my brain questions the emotions.

how can i feel so sad?
i look at chloe,
her wild, white blonde hair,
her plump, rosy cheeks.
she is the picture of health.
why the sadness?

i can only guess that i feel sadness
akin to what one feels about growing up.
a loss of innocence,
a knowing that it can happen.

fill in the it with any trauma.
before july 2010,
i never imagined anything like it could happen.
now i know better.

i experienced my first flashbacks in the fall of 2010.
something unknown would trigger
memories of those first days,
the ultrasound,
the phone call,
checking into DeVos Children's
and all that followed.
it was scary,
i didn't understand.

now, the flashbacks are different.
they are bittersweet.
bitter, because of the sadness, the loss of innocence.
sweet, because now i can see past my own shock.
in the midst of that crazy summer of
an unexpected diagnosis,
a major surgery
and treatment that took over life for the better part of a year,
there was more happening around me than my own emotions.

now i see what was happening around me.
i see the people who visited us in the hospital,
arms filled with gas cards, snacks, little tokens for the kids.
not to mention the flood of treats, gifts
and other tangible reminders of love and concern
left at our house.
the unending meals,
central air funded by anonymous donors,
and the prayers,
groups of friends coming together at church to pray for us,
prayers written in cards or sent in e-mails,
prayers of which we are not even aware,
the unfathomable love of the body of Christ.

the memories are bitter, there is sadness.
there is a loss of innocence.

and yet,
there is a part of me that feels so thankful.
thankful that i had the opportunity to experience it all.
i cherish the small moments of sweetness,
the smiles, the giggles,
the stuff of which life is made.

i feel thankful that i get to know this,
this depth, this bigger picture of life.
i feel like i have been allowed to peek into a window.

i will never be the same person that i was before that day
of checking Chloe into the hospital.
i am glad for that.



*for those who are prone to worry, i am fine. i have a fantastic therapist. the flashbacks are a way for my brain/heart to process those traumatic times. i am working through it all.

1000+ Letters to Santa to benefit Make-A-Wish

Chloe, Christa and Judy (Christa's mom) "mailed" 1,021 letters to Santa this morning to benefit Make-A-Wish!

Thanks to the following schools for helping with the letter writing:

Holland East - 246 letters

Roosevelt Elementary & ZQuest - 287 letters

Grandville Middle School - 488 letters

(Special thanks to Jeff Pietrowski for organizing the GMS effort!)

The mailbox is full!

UPDATE: There was a nice article in the Holland Sentinel sharing our letter collection efforts.

Make-A-Wish: Thanks, Letters to Santa, & Chloe's Trip

Make-A-Wish Walk for Wishes

A very belated thank you to those who helped Team Chloe raise $960 for Make-A-Wish back in October! Thanks to the walkers who joined us on a chilly, rainy morning: the Divozzo family, Christa's dad, and my parents. Also, thanks to those who joined us virtually by donating to our team's efforts: Jenny & Jon, Heather, Tara, Tracey, Barbara, Allie & Tim, Adriann & Jason, Ann, Bethany, Beth, and our parents.

Macy's Believe: Make-A-Wish Fundraiser

While Santa doesn't stop by our house (much to Chloe's dismay), we will be writing letters to Santa to encourage Macy's to donate to Make-A-Wish. Macy's will be donating $1 to Make-A-Wish, up to a $1 million, for each letter to Santa that is dropped off at their store. We're encouraging the teachers and students at each of our schools to participate, and if you'd like to participate as well you can get your letters to our family and we'll drop them off at Macy's next week (week of Dec. 17th).

Chloe's Make-A-Wish: Yellowstone

We're in what I'll call final revisions for Chloe's Make-A-Wish trip to Yellowstone next August. Some of our destinations have been booked and we're working on the decisions about a few others. Thanks for your support of Make-A-Wish that makes Chloe's and our family's trip to Yellowstone a reality, and Wishes a reality for other kids and families who are living through childhood cancer.

We are blessed to be a blessing to others...