Hello Everyone!
Today - what an awesome first day! It all started at 9am,
when Sarah (my assistant extraordinaire & best friend) arrived
at my house to get me in her fabulous red Kia Soul. Our first stop
was San Diego, California to meet a father and his daughter, who
were both affected by cancer in different ways.
Doc, who had prostate cancer, shared his story with us and told me
"I'm not a survivor." As we talked, I told him what my definition of a
survivor was "From the moment you are diagnosed with cancer, you
are a survivor, whether you're going through treatment or have been
free of cancer for years. Every day you kick the cancer, you are surviving!
It doesn't matter if you've been through chemo or radiation or neither, you
still are a survivor!" Doc, smiled at me as I told him this.
Also with Doc, was his daughter Kryse, who was affected by cancer in another
way - she had lost her husband to pancreatic cancer in January. She shared
her heart wrenching story, but also her strong, positive attitude and her
passion to help others she met battling the disease.
How did UCAAN help these two fabulous people & UCAAN supporters?
My step-dad, met Doc at an event and told him about UCAAN and how we
help others affected by cancer. Doc in turn contacted me on Facebook to
find out more. We hit it off and have been speaking for several months.
I helped him by providing information to Kryse when she was going through
her husband's treatments and his passing - sometimes by providing small
things to people can make a big difference, which is what we try to do!
I gave a few gifts to Doc & Kryse today..... Gifts of Hope that many have
received from me in the past and will continue to receive. I made a "Hang in
there Hope Monkey" for Doc- it was cute and had some awesome muscles! I also
made Kryse a "Share the Hope" Bracelet and a "In Memory of" Plaque with her husband's name on it and a special message on the back. Just seeing how excited they were to receive these small gifts of hope, was awesome!
After we spent time with them, we were on the road again - with a 5 hour drive ahead of us to Phoenix, Arizona. The drive was fun, as Sarah and I found ourselves singing the whole way, laughing and having a blast. We say a lot of fun sights during the drive, like a small chapel on a big hill of sand, a restaurant shaped like a UFO, some gorgeous mountains & scenery, the handsome fellas at the border patrol with their dogs, the exciting sign for Golden Corral (Where we stopped and ate- amazing how they show commercials in our area for this restaurant but we have none.) and the awesome sign that read "State Prison Surprise" and underneath it "Wild Animal Park" - sooo random!
We did encounter what I would call a crazy intersection, that had cars coming from like 8 directions. I've been at a 5-way stop, but never an 8-way stop - which was completely confusing. Sarah and I can't wait to leave tomorrow and not have to deal with this intersection again!
I've included some pictures of the day for you. Hope you enjoy and You'll heard from me tomorrow, after we visit the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Goodyear Arizona and head out to El Paso, Texas!
More to come!! This is only Day 1.
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