I've meant to write before now, but just haven't been able to find the time. First, some praise reports from some of our families over the past few weeks:
Michelle Schmitt had her kidney transplant on November 1! Her new kidney came from one of her best friends: a living, non-related donor. What a picture of the Gospel and Jesus' selfless love for us! Both Michelle and her donor, Crystal, are recovering well. Congratulations, guys! Happy Thanksgiving, indeed! Check out her story in the Southeast Outlook here.
Also congratulations to Adam Stoflet! He officially finished chemo, overcame another off-treatment hurdle/ICU stay, and is now, we hope and pray, on his way to a full recovery! His latest MRI a few days ago was No Evidence of Disease (NED - no cancer)! Please continue to pray for the Stoflet family.
Please continue to pray for all of our other families who are still in treatment or are dealing with chronic illness. Please pray specifically for a little guy named Kaden Book. Kaden will turn 5-years-old tomorrow and was diagnosed last Friday with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). His parents, Halie and Kevin, were youth leaders at my church when I was younger. Please pray for them as they begin this long cancer journey: for peace, strength, joy, hope, perseverance, and courage.
Second, besides praying for our families (which is always welcome and needed) you can help us partner with one of our families to bring the love and hope of Jesus Christ to families facing pediatric bone marrow transplants this holiday season! The Smith family's triplet son, Conner, underwent a bone marrow transplant at Cincinnati Children's Hospital four years ago - on August 17, 2007 - for a rare immune system disorder. Now, they collect gift cards every year around Thanksgiving and Christmas to donate to families in need during the holiday season. Conner's mom, Kristin, explains:
"Most of you know that our son Conner underwent a life saving bone marrow transplant four years ago. Even though we were there for months, we were lucky that he was hospitalized just a few hours from home. However, most BMT children must travel a great distance to a specialized transplant facility and are often hospitalized for many months. Unfortunately, many of these families don't have much support and most of these kids are separated from one of their parents and their siblings during the holiday season, which makes it even more unbearable. So, last year we decided to do a Gift Card Drive to collect gift cards to share with hospitalized BMT kids. The gift cards were used to help purchase Christmas gifts for the kids or help cover travel and lodging expenses to bring their families together for the holidays. Once again we've decided to collect gift cards for BMT families. If you are interested in helping these families and would like to send a donation or gift card please let me know or simply mail them to the address below. No amount is too small, you can get gift cards in pretty much any denomination. Some suggestions might be cards for Target, Walmart, gas cards, Visa, American Express gift cards, etc.
Please let me know if you have any questions!
Mail cards or donations to:
Kristin Smith
c/o Tecton
102 N. Third St, Suite 201
Lafayette, IN 47901
Thank you for your continued love, support and generosity over the years!"
There you have it! If you have any questions or have any other ideas as to how we can share the love and hope of Jesus Christ with families facing childhood cancer or other life-altering illnesses this holiday season, please contact us! We'd love to partner with you!
Take time to count your blessings and give thanks today and every day! Happy Thanksgiving!
Hoping, Believing, and Never Giving up,
Sarah
