Please help my DS6 and I fight A-T!!

[andromedaslove]

Ok, I know I am late for my contests, but I hae good reason today. To give you some idea of what my night and day today have been like I am going to share with you the posts from the WISH section on the DIS today!!

This is my post from last night before I went to bed:

As many of you know my DS6 has been training to run the Disney 5k ever since we got back from the Full last January, he has worked so hard and has been so excited. I now feel like the worlds worst Mom. I promised him this race, and just found out tonight that it is already closed. I have spent the last 2 hours on the computer HOPING to find some way to get entry into this race and have come up with nothing. So this is my last ditch effort before I break the news to him. If anyone has any advice or suggestions it would be greatly appreciated.

This is the post from this morning when I realized I would be able to get in the race through a charity organization:

Last night I literally went to bed with tears in my eyes. See, after I asked you guys for help I sat down with Michael and explained to him that I was still trying to find a way for us to run this race, but that we might not be able to. The first words out of his mouth were, "I did all that hard work for nothing". I, of course, told him how sorry I was, and he told me it was okay. I told him I didn't feel like it was okay, that I felt like I had let him down, and you'll never believe what he told me. He said, "You could never let me down, your my Mom!". Seriously, it took everything I had not to break down and bawl. I did ask him what I did to deserve a kid so sweet!! So when I woke up this morning with this information from all of you it really was like a miracle. I know it's not going to be easy to raise this money, but at this point I am willing to do whatever it takes to give him this race. So thank you guys so much!!

And here is a copy of the letter I have sent to my friends and family:

Ok, this is an exact copy of the letter I am sending to Family and Friends in hope that they will donate to help us with our cause. I figured I would extend the same letter to my friends here, some of you have been there for virtual hugs more than family!!

Dear Family and Friends,

As many of you know I have been running for a few years now. I participated in the Marathon at Walt Disney World last year, and will be doing so again this coming January. My 6 year old son Michael has also become involved in running with me, and since last year's Marathon has been begging me to let him run the 5k at Animal Kingdom during this year's Marathon weekend. We thought it would be a good idea to show him what it's like to run to help others, not just for yourself.

So, we have become involved with a tremendous organization – one that’s racing to find a cure for ataxia-telangiectasia, or A-T for short. A-T is a rare, fatal genetic disease that attacks children. Imagine a disease that combines the worst symptoms of cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, cancer, and AIDS all rolled into one fatal disease. Children who could once run and play, sing and talk, read and write, lose their motor skills one by one, are usually in wheelchairs by age ten, and rarely survive their teens. Also, because of the similarities between the diseases, research on ataxia-telangiectasia helps other more prevalent diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and cancer.

On January 11 2008, Michael and I will be participating in the 5K Safari Family Fun Run as part of the A-T Marathon Weekend – a group of runners, walkers and joggers who are raising money for the A-T Children’s Project, a public charity that raises funds to support and coordinate biomedical research projects, scientific conferences, and the A-T Clinical Center at Johns Hopkins Hospital all aimed at finding a cure or life-improving therapies for A-T. I feel fortunate that I found the A-T Children’s Project by signing up for the Marathon Weekend. Otherwise, I might not have been in the position to help this unbelievable group of families and friends coping with this devastating disease, and to make a real difference for these children.

I am excited that you now have the opportunity to join me in helping these kids and also to further research for other more prevalent diseases. Our personal goal is to raise $500.00 each by December 14 2007. If you would prefer to donate online, you may do so by visiting their website at www.atcp.org and click on the Donate Now link – you will see the link to sponsor a Marathon Weekend participant. If you wouold like to donate by mail or in person please contact me at andromed@bellsouth.net so that I can provide you with the information you may need. By sponsoring me and Michael, you will be making a tremendous impact on this grassroots charity that has achieved so much with so little. If you have any questions about the A-T Children’s Project, please do not hesitate to contact Jennifer Thornton, Executive Director directly at 800-5-HELP-A-T (800-543-5728).

Michael's Donation Webpage - http://www.communityatcp.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?&pid=243&srcid=259&frsid=1002

Dana's Donation Webpage - http://www.communityatcp.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?&pid=243&srcid=259&frsid=1001

Most sincerely,
Dana Crawford

Volunteer fundraiser for the A-T Children’s Project

I thought that some of my friends and fellow photographers here may be interested in helping. There are no expectations, and no advantages will be given in the contests to anyone who does help , but I figured it was worth a try.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to look at this, and I promise those contests will be up and running no later than tomorrow morning!!

Dana