race for the cure.

If you had asked me two years ago when I originally featured Susan G. Komen, that I would feature it again because it hit so close to home...I would have laughed. We were all perfectly healthy. Sure we drink a little on the weekends, and enjoy a night out to eat every once in a while. But my family was unbreakable. We had been through enough....from divorces and births, deaths and marriages. I thought we had seen it all.

Two years ago I wouldn't have dreamed I'd be walking a Susan G. Komen walk in honor of my stepmom, who is currently smack dab in the middle of her fight against breast cancer. She was diagnosed last fall, and since then has had chemo treatments every three weeks. She will continue chemo every three weeks through the rest of the year, and on top of that, this week, she started radiation, which she will do daily until the end of June.

It's overwhelming and really scary to see a parent go through something like this. They are the tough ones that have all the answers, not the ones to get sick. But the scariness of it all washed away on Sunday, when almost fifty of our family members and friends came out to walk for Susie. 

The love and support our family has received over the past six months has truly been amazing. Seeing everyone there in front of her, supporting, loving, and laughing with her meant even more. For those of you who donated, and those who came and walked...thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Because of you, we raised around $2,908 for Susan G. Komen and breast cancer research. You all are amazing :)

Be the change. Make the difference.

grammy sue.

A lot has changed for me in the past six months. I said yes to marrying my best friend. I landed my dream job. I moved home. I have come to hate the word cancer. 

It's always been a scary word to me. I've known others who have survived it before, including my own father. Of course that was long before my time, so I had never really experienced it up close and personal. But when you hear that someone you love has been diagnosed with cancer, your heart just sort of stops beating for a few seconds.

I immediately burst into tears when my dad called to tell me that my stepmom, Susie, had been diagnosed with breast cancer. I felt scared and angry and overwhelmed. And then she got on the phone and said "Jess, I'm just scared to death I'm going to be bald at your wedding."

And then I couldn't help but laugh because here was one of the strongest women I know staring cancer in the face, and she's worried about my wedding. And then I laughed some more through the tears because this woman has been through far more than a lot of people I know, and far more than I can imagine. And I knew right away that she would not only beat cancer, but beat it and come out swinging on the other side. 


It's been a long few months for her as she has been going through heavy doses of chemotherapy every three weeks. But she's got a positive attitude and on days she feels better, spends a lot of time with the family.

My brothers and sisters and I have started a team for the Susan G. Komen walk in Kalamazoo on May 19th. If you would like to join our team and come walk with us, click HERE. If you aren't able to walk that day, but would still like to show Susie your support, make a financial donation by clicking HERE. Thank you in advance for your support on this one...it means the world to me.

Be the change. Make the difference.

save lids to save lives.

It's that time of year again folks! Where everything turns a beautiful shade of PINK! 

From now until the end of the year, your grocery store will be a little bit brighter as more than 20 General Mills brands will turn pink to save lives, along with Yoplait yogurt lids. All you have to do is buy PINK, and either get the lids to me, mail them in yourself OR redeem them on your own here. 

For every code you redeem, the fine people at General Mills will be donating $.10 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure....up to $2.5 million! Your donations are tracked by zip code, and the donations made through this program will go toward a Susan G. Komen affiliate in your area to continue the fight against breast cancer. 

I may or may not have already started my PINK yogurt shopping...I eat one of these every day, so I'm sure we'll have a lot at the end of this collection!

Remember, you can also help Susan G. Komen for the Cure by finding a Race for the Cure near you to participate in. Click here to find one near you!

So, to recap, currently I am collecting shoes for Soles4Souls, and any PINK lid or box you can find in your grocery store for Susan G. Komen. Oh, and pop tops for Ronald McDonald House! Those are THREE completely different ways you can save the world with me....pick one! Or three :)

Be the change. Make the difference.

race for the cure.

As you may or may not remember, last October we collected Pennies for the Girls, and donated the money to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Well next week Saturday, the 22nd, you have a great opportunity to help Susan G. Komen again. 

The 2012 West Michigan Race for the Cure will be held at Rivertown Crossings Mall in Grandville. You can choose to run ($30 fee) or walk ($25 fee) for the event, either as an individual or as a team. If you want to register, click here.

Remember, your entry fee and any additional money donated goes toward research and finding a cure for breast cancer. 

Not in Michigan? All you have to do is click here to find a Race for the Cure near you.

Not feeling motivated to run or walk for the Cure? That's fine too, you can still donate to the Cure by clicking here. Help put an end to this horrible disease forever!

Be the change. Make the difference. 

the difference - Susan G. Komen for the Cure

October has been a wonderful (and very PINK) month for me! I have learned a lot about breast cancer that I did not know, and I hope I have helped you learn something new as well. Even though the month is over, I would be more then happy to take your PINK yogurt lids and register them, as Yoplait will donate money for each one claimed through December!

For now, we have collected 36 pink Yoplait yogurt lids...with translates to Yoplait donating $3.70 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Also, "Pennies for the Girls" at work, along with a few donations from you guys totaled $113.18 for Komen too! Those pennies do add up :)


Thank you times a million for your support this month...you all amaze me. Stay tuned for the November feature!


Be the change. Make the difference.

pennies!

The people who have donated this month have honestly just made me tear up about seven different times at work. One of my favorite residents came in today and gave me $20 for "Pennies for the Girls" for Susan G. Komen for the Cure!

Check out how full our penny jars are! I love this project because I just get so excited for the results that I can hardly sleep. Still a few more days for pennies and pink yogurt lids! Get them to me or claim your lids here.


Be the change. Make the difference.

risk factors

Right now, we do not know the cause of breast cancer, however there are several risk factors that can increase your chance of getting breast cancer. I found these on the Susan G. Komen for the Cure website. Researchers have identified these things as factors, however not every women who gets breast cancer has these factors.

Unfortunately, the main risk factor is getting older. If you are a woman, your chance of getting breast cancer increases the older you get. For example, if you are a 20 year old woman, the chance is 1 in 1,760...but if you are a 50 year old woman your chance is 1 in 42. By the time you are 70 the chance is 1 in 27 woman will have breast cancer. (Source: American Cancer Society Breast Cancer Facts and Figures 2009-2010.)

Other factors include:

• having an inherited mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 breast cancer genes
• having a previous biopsy showing hyperplasia
• a family history of breast cancer
• having high breast density on a mammogram
• being exposed to large amounts of radiation
• a personal history of breast or ovarian cancer
• starting menopause after age 55
• never having children
• having your first child after age 35
• high bone density
• being overweight after menopause 
• having more than one drink of alcohol per day
• postmenopausal hormone use of estrogen or estrogen plus progestin
• being younger than 12 at the time of your first period
• current or recent use of birth control pills

Keeping yourself healthy can decrease your chances of getting breast cancer. Translation: stay active, exercise regularly, eat healthy foods, don't smoke and no more than one alcohol drink per day!

Only a few more days in October to donate Pennies to the Girls or give me your PINK Yogurt lids (claim them on your own here.)

Be the change. Make the difference.

just another reason for me to love jason

One of my favorite country artists, Jason Aldean had his annual "Concert For The Cure" at the beginning of the month where he donated the profits from a tour stop in Roanoke, Virginia to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Here is what he had to say about it:

"This is one of my favorite things we do all year and taking it on the road to other cities has been huge in helping us bring in more money for Komen. All of the money we raised will go to the local Roanoke effort, allowing them to give free mammograms to those who can't afford it. We'll pick a different spot for next year and try to beat it."

www.jasonaldean.com

Love LOVE when artists do things like this! It's so amazing! He raised $315,000 for Susan G. Komen!  

I haven't raised quite as much as Jason, but just in the bills donated to "Pennies for the Girls" at work, there is $30! Every little bit counts, right?! I'm excited to count all the pennies this week to see how much we've collected! Don't forget to get me your pink Yogurt lids or claim yours here.

Be the change. Make the difference.

the talk.

Generally, I'm not a huge fan of the show "The Talk" on CBS, however sometimes they have really great things on there. For example, surgical breast specialist Dr. Kristi Funk was on recently to talk about the facts of breast cancer and how you can decrease your chance of having it one day. She also gives a demo on how women can do a self examination on their own.

Please PLEASE watch this video if you are a woman and have questions or simply don't know what to look for. It's not just about wearing PINK and collecting pink Yogurt lids and pennies...you have to know the signs. And check for them often!

After you watch this, and give yourself an examination....get your Yogurt lids and pennies to me for Susan G. Komen for the Cure so we can find a cure!

Be the change. Make the difference.  

all the ways to help

There are so many ways you can donate to Susan G. Komen for the Cure this month, you can find PINK things almost anywhere :) Here are some examples:

Need a new pair of earrings? Buy these pink stud earrings from Payless, and a portion of the net profits will go to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Want to show your support with a cute pink shirt or water bottle? Buy something from the Ipromise line at Old Navy, and 5% of the retail sales price goes to Susan G. Komen.

Looking for a new credit card? For every new Susan G. Komen branded Bank of America credit card Komen receives $3 plus .20% of all net retail purchases made with the card! 

Are you a runner? Find a Susan G. Komen Marathon for the Cure here to register and/or donate to a runner.

I went straight to ShopKomen and bought a cute sweater to help find a cure. It's so cute and I will be able to wear it a lot this winter!

Don't forget to give me your PINK yogurt lids or claim your own here. Also if you have spare change get them to me for "Pennies for the Girls" at work!

Be the change. Make the difference.

signs

While all the pretty pink this month shows support for breast cancer awareness, we need to remember what this month is really about. Ladies, you have to know the signs and symptoms! I found these on the Susan G. Komen for the Cure website....spread the word!

Signs that you should not ignore:

*Lumps, hard knot or thickening inside the breast or underarm

*Swelling, warmth, redness or darkening of the breast

*change in the size or shape of the breast

*dimpling or puckering of the skin

*itchy, scaly sore or rash on the nipple

*pulling in of your nipple or other parts of the breast

*nipple discharge that starts suddenly

*new pain in one spot that does not go away

Now that you know the signs and symptoms, spread the word and keep collecting your PINK lids from Yoplait yogurt. Get them to me or claim yours here. OR give me your pennies to help find a cure!

Be the change. Make the difference.

pennies for the girls

Look at all the pretty pink! We have already had several residents come in to donate their pennies for Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and I'm sure we'll have a few more. As I was closing up tonight, I noticed someone had snuck by me and left a zip lock bag full of rolled pennies and there was a $10 dollar bill in one of the jars! I honestly felt like crying, I was so proud.

Remember, you don't even have to donate money this month, just send me your PINK yogurt lids from Yoplait and I will send them in. For every lid sent Yoplait is donating TEN CENTS to Susan G. Komen... you can register yours on your own here.  

I also need to let you know how much money we raised by shopping Thirty One last month for Ronald McDonald House of Western Michigan. $67 is on it's way to the House right now to help provide a home away from home for those facing medical emergencies :) Nice work everyone! Stay tuned for more about Susan G. Komen!  

Be the change. Make the difference. 

christine

So, at work we are collecting "Pennies for the Girls" to raise money for Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and last week as I was starting to set up our table my friend Christine came in. She is seven and very curious and naturally asked what "Pennies for the Girls" meant. The easiest way I could think of to explain it to a seven year old is that we were collecting money for girls who were sick with breast cancer.

She took another look at the table, looked at me again and said "Well I get money every now and then for doing chores around the house...like feeding the cat and cleaning and stuff. Maybe I could bring some of my money in, if it is going to help them."

And my heart just melted. Sure enough, the next day she came marching into the office with somewhere around $1.50 in her hand, and put it in the jar. 

I hope my kids are like Christine someday. 

Lets all take notes from this awesome seven year old, and step up to make a difference! Send your pennies or Yoplait PINK lids my way, and stay tuned for more ways to help this month! Don't worry, our display will look much better when I'm finished with it tomorrow--updated pictures coming!

Be the change. Make the difference. 

the deets.

Many of you may have heard of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization before, but may not know what it's really about or any of the details (the deets!) about it. I found this nifty little intro on the website, and I think it is just a perfect summary:

"Susan G. Komen fought breast cancer with her heart, body and soul. Throughout her diagnosis, treatments, and endless days in the hospital, she spent her time thinking of ways to make life better for other women battling breast cancer instead of worrying about her own situation. That concern for others continued even as Susan neared the end of her fight. Moved by Susan’s compassion for others and committed to making a difference, Nancy G. Brinker promised her sister that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever.

That promise is now Susan G. Komen for the Cure®, the global leader of the breast cancer movement, having invested more than $1.9 billion since inception in 1982. As the world’s largest grassroots network of breast cancer survivors and activists, we’re working together to save lives, empower people, ensure quality care for all and energize science to find the cures. Thanks to events like the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure® and the Susan G. Komen 3-Day for the Cure®, and generous contributions from our partners, sponsors and fellow supporters, we have become the largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer in the world." 

And that, my friends, is why I chose Susan G. Komen to feature. Because the story behind it all is such an inspiration. And because they are the biggest and the best! There are SO MANY ways you can help this month, and I will be talking about all of them in the following posts. But, as previously mentioned, Susan G. Komen for the cure has teamed up with Yoplait, and the PINK lids you see can be redeemed...and every lid that is redeemed Yoplait will donate ten cents. So DON'T THROW THEM AWAY! Get them to me or click here to redeem them on your own. 

On top of that, at work we have decided to collect "Pennies for the Girls" and donate the money to Susan G. Komen too! I'm really excited about this and will have some pictures for you next time of our set up :) So get me your pennies too!

Be the change. Make the difference. 

hello October!

October seems to have creeped up on me somehow! Time to wrap up one month and introduce another :) 

As you all know, in September I featured The Ronald McDonald House of Western Michigan, collected pop tabs for them to turn in for money and hosted a Thirty One party where a percentage of the sales go to them! I have a gallon size zip lock bag full of pop tabs which may only come out to a few dollars--but every little bit helps! I am not sure yet how much money will be donated to RMH through Thirty One, but I will let you know when I know the total :)
 
On to October :) Since this month is breast cancer awareness month, I have decided to feature Susan G. Komen for the Cure! I am excited to tell you more about this great organization and all the ways you can help, but the main way I will be supporting them is collecting Yoplait yogurt lids as part of their "Save Lids. Save Lives."  So, start buying yogurt with the PINK lids, and get them to me this month! Stay tuned for more details :)

Be the change. Make the difference.