End of July Update

Hi everyone. Tomorrow's another chemo infusion and we wanted to give a brief update beforehand. Sara is in the sweet spot of her infusion schedule because she feels best just before it's time to go back. We had a really nice week with Sara feeling strong both mentally and physically. We had two big family dinners - just because. It really was nice and we had a fantastic time.

You may have seen us wearing our new pink bracelets this week. I decided that instead of wearing a yellow "Live Strong" bracelet or a nondescript pink one with no message, we should have a special message on ours. Ours say "Supporting Sara" and I thought it was just one more way to announce what's on our minds and what we are doing these days.

The 3-Day Walk is rapidly approaching and our cousin Deborah is walking her tushy off . . . literally. She has been logging countless miles each week in anticipation of the 60 mile trek. I joined her last weekend for a big walk (15 miles) and I'm happy to say she put me to shame! We walked the Green Bay Trail from the Braeside train station in Highland Park to the Baha'i Temple in Wilmette (and back) in 4 hours. After 3 hours my feet were throbbing and my hips were screaming. Deborah, on the other hand, was pain-free and walking as effortlessly at that point as she was when we started. We talked about everything (it WAS a 4 hour walk!), but it all kept coming back to Sara. Regardless of the topic, we both had in the back of our heads the important reason we were out there in the first place.

By now you all probably know that Deborah has raised $25,000 (that's not a misprint) for the cause and is the highest fund-raiser to date out of the nearly 3000 people doing the Chicago walk. To acknowledge this accomplishment, the organizers asked her to carry the "Friendship" flag in the opening and closing ceremonies. We cannot adequately express how thankful we are for Deborah's and your support. Sara and I are literally brought to tears on a weekly, if not daily, basis by how you have all become a part of our journey. "Thank you" just doesn't seem enough, but please let it be our start.

The 3-Day Walk kicks off on Friday August 6 at 6:30 a.m. at Northbrook Court. We'll be there to send Deborah off in style. We don't expect any of you to be there, but when your alarms go off that morning, just pause for a minute to look at your bracelets and think about the monumental walk that is beginning. When your weekend is winding down two days later, think about the fact that all the participants will just be finishing. We'll be at Soldier Field (crying I'm sure) at 4:30 as Deborah walks in and takes her honorary position on stage (with Sara, hopefully) to close out the event. It's going to be an amazing weekend.

Ok, that's it for now. We look forward to seeing you all soon.

Brian