Cystic Fibrosis Walk 2018

On Sunday, May 6, 2018 we participated in our 11th annual Great Strides walk to benefit Cystic Fibrosis research, in San Jose. The walk is put on by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation ("CFF") - but most of my donors make a contribution to the Tara K. Telford fund for Cystic Fibrosis Research at UC Davis.

We walk because of my friend, Tara. Every other year, I have said we walk in "honor" of her. But this year, we walked in "memory" of her. She was amazing - positive, and fun, and strong - and she passed away in November 2017. She had a double lung transplant in January 2016 and she fought hard - to stay alive, make memories with her family, bring others up, and enjoy the life she had. I guarantee that if you knew her, you'd want to walk in her memory too.

This year the CFF asked me to participate in an interview before the walk. I talked about Tara, how she inspired me to make good choices and how she lived life to the fullest. I'll let you know once the interview is online.

Thank you to everyone that donated this year. This year there were 14 donations to CFF and 11 to Tara's fund at UC Davis. Here is a list of donors, along with the "honor roll of donors."

http://someonechristina.blogspot.com/2018/03/thank-you-for-your-cf-donation-2018.html

This was before the walk - after we were interviewed. We were wearing our "Think Pink Lungs #TeamTelford" shirts, which were made when Tara was on the waiting list for a lung transplant.

A big highlight were the cookies and snacks available before the walk.

Like every other year, I made a sign with our team name "Friends of Tara" and put the names of all of the "honor roll donors" on it. Erin Haley (whom I went to Georgetown with) has donated EVERY year that I have raised money - she's a rock star!

Here are Ashley and Thomas leading the pack - holding our sign to represent why we were there.

We saw some interesting insects along the way. :-)

We did it - another successful year of fundraising for cystic fibrosis research. We'd love to have some company on the walk next year ... hint, hint. :-)

Thank you for your CF donation - 2018

Thank you to the following individuals for making donations in 2018 to either the Tara K Telford Graduate Student Award at UC Davis or the Cystic Fibrosis Great Strides event. Your generosity is appreciated!

If you make a donation to Tara's fund (and I hope you do - that is where I donate every year), please let me know so I can properly thank you - I won't get a notification.

CFF = Cystic Fibrosis Foundation donation

UCD = Tara K. Telford Graduate Student Award at UC Davis donation

1. Christine McKee Deelo - UCD
2. Ryan Long - CFF
3. Betsy McClellan - CFF
4. Michelle Nystrom - CFF
5. Corey McIntyre - CFF
6. Shannon deCola - CFF ** she donated twice this year!!
7. Jennifer Bell - UCD
8. Molly Obert - CFF
9. Pamela Ott - UCD
10. Vivian Hui - CFF
11. Dana and David Ritter - UCD
12. Marilyn Perry - UCD
13. Annie Chang - CFF
14. Michael Kan - CFF
15. John and Janine Loconsolo - UCD
16. Manal Assal - CFF
17. Michelle and Fran Coen - UCD
18. Aruna Paritala - CFF
19. Alex and Shelby Breen - UCD
20. Hassan Mahmoud - UCD
21. Julie and Joe Pierron - CFF
22. Joy and Jared Goor - UCD
23. Christine Butler - CFF
24. Erin Haley - CFF - 11th year of donating (!!)
25. Louise McGeown - UCD

Honor Roll of Donors - updated on 5/4/2018

11 years			Vivian Hui
	Erin Haley		Gina Piper
10 years			Marilyn Perry
	Corey McIntyre		Annie Chang
	Julie and Joe Pierron		Michelle and Fran Coen
	Joy and Jared Goor	6 years
9 years			Kristin Perkins
	Jean Kelley		Loy and Marge Hayes
	Bill and Sharon McKee		Rick Long
8 years			Raul Tiansay
	Ryan Long		John and Janine Loconsolo
	Hassan Mahmoud	5 years
7 years			Becky and Cordell Baanhofman
	Bhaskar and Veera Mantha		Michelle Nystrom
	Lauren and Tom Mensch		Aruna Paritala
	Audrey and Bryan Gillette

Annual Fundraising for CF Research - 2018

Today I am asking for:

1) Please consider making a donation to the Tara K Telford Graduate Student Award for Cystic Fibrosis Research at UC Davis (this is where I donate every year). You can do this online from the following link. Please let me know that you have donated to this fund so I can properly thank you. I will not receive a notification that you donated.      

https://give.ucdavis.edu/GRAD/150006

                  

    or        

Consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation through our Great Strides walk (my 11th year participating - will take place in San Jose on May 6) using this link (I will get a notification). You can also sign up to walk with us from this link.  http://fightcf.cff.org/site/TR/GreatStrides/98_Northern_California_San_Francisco?px=1388364&pg=personal&fr_id=6556

2)  Consider becoming an organ donor. And consider being a blood donor (I do this every few months). You can save lives.

3) If you are healthy, and I hope you are, make good choices about your body. We owe it to those who can't control their health to appreciate ours.

What is CF? 

Cystic Fibrosis is a hereditary disorder that causes the production of abnormally thick mucous that leads to blockage and severe infection of the lungs. It also affects the pancreas and stops natural enzymes from helping the body break down food and absorb vital nutrients. In the 1950s, children with CF rarely lived long enough to attend elementary school. Today, because of advances in research and care the median predicted age of survival is about 40.

• More than 30,000 people are living with cystic fibrosis (70,000 worldwide).
• CF causes persistent lung infections and complications to other organs.
• Some people with CF say it feels like breathing through a straw.
• About one in every 30 Americans are symptomless carriers of the defective CF gene.

THANK YOU for your continued support and donations! After the walk I'll send our donors some pictures of us walking, thanks to your support.