The Clock Tics...Children Die

The clock tics and children die. Every minute counts.

At a fairly young age, most of us realize that life can be a challenge, even when everything goes according to plan. By the time we become parents, we’ve learned to expect a few bumps in the road. But no mother or father is ever prepared for the words “Your child has a brain tumor,” or “Your child has a spinal cord tumor.”

Before anything else is said, you know life will never be the same. An unexpected, unwanted entity has invaded the very center of your family’s world. All at once, the triumphs and trials of everyday existence hold little importance.

The specter of brain cancer can be overwhelming, especially in children. Against such odds, it often seems easy to surrender to despair. Yet just as often it is the children themselves who supply the emotional foundation for hope. The courage and determination of these children and their families is just amazing.

The symptoms of brain tumors in a child often mimic those of common childhood illnesses. Because the symptoms are similar, a brain tumor is not always diagnosed when the symptoms first occur. If the symptoms persist, a parent may become increasingly concerned and ask for additional tests to determine the cause. Sometimes a child’s doctor or teacher may notice physical changes in the child that are unusual.

There is no known cause or cure of a brain tumor. They strike our children with little warning and no mercy.

It is up to us, the private sector to do all we can to support pediatric brain tumor research.

Please join us today, tomorrow, next week, etc. and make a difference. Give children HOPE.

All you need to do is skip one fast food meal and donate your lunch money to Brown Bag For A Cure. All donations go directly to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, that is also the largest non-governmental funding agency in the world for this research.

America....

The clock is ticking for our kids. Every minute and every dollar counts. Be a hero for the kids today ...

Dear Friends

Dear Friends,

As some of you know, I lost my job with the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and out of that journey, Brown Bag For A Cure was born. I am thankful for the many opportunities that were given to me during my employment with them. I got to travel to many cities and meet some amazing children and their families.. Sadly some of those children are no longer with us.

Brown Bag For A Cure is my vision of how we can all make a difference. Today many struggle with day to day living expenses and many of you have already made a donation, showing your true character and dedication to helping find a cure for the cancer that kills more children than any other. The 2008 goal was set at $25,00

My thinking was it would be so easy to find 5,000 caring individuals, who would make a $5.00 contribution. Even if you support another organization, what is $5.00? It's the price of an average fast food meal or a cup of latte.

Time is running out and my vision is about to be crushed. I chose not to invest part of your donations into rubber bracelets, magnets, etc. I chose to donate every cent you donated to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, my former employer.

Please re-consider and help me.
5000 people x $5.00 donation = $25,000
2500 people x $10.00 donation =$25,000
1000 people x $25.00 donation =$25,000

Make your donation online at our secure wehsite: Please Donate Here

Mail your donation to me: Kathy/Brown Bag For A Cure, 9282 Monongahela Tr., Ashland, VA 23005 Checks or money orders are never made to me, but to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation and I will forward them on to Asheville.

Brown Bag For A Cure is about finding a cure for pediatric brain tumors and ending the suffering.

Check out my website: Brown Bag For A Cure

On this blog, you will find links to websites for so many children who are counting on us.

I beLIeVE In A Cure, do you?

As you are thinking about whether to help or not, take a quick peak at the "Littlest Soldiers", who are counting on us.

Please Pray for Brayden

Update: I am sorry to have to tell everyone, Brayden earned his wings, Tuesday evening, May 27, 2008, at 10:40 PM.



Please pray for Brayden and his family.

Brayden Kenseth Harrell was born March 19, 2003. He is 5 years old and lives in Pelham, Georgia. Brayden was diagnosed on July 18, 2007with a tumor on his brainstem. The type of tumor he has is called a Pontine Glioma it is highly aggressive, highly malignant, treatment resistant and recurrent.

Brayden's family made one of the hardest decisions of their life yesterday. After meeting with his doctors in Atlanta, they made the wrenching to decision to stop treatments and take him home, where he can be in peace.

Hospice has been called in and they start today (Sunday). Brayden's expected timeline is 2-6 weeks.

Please continue to pray for peace for this Sweet Angel.

If you would like to leave a message here, I will forward them to his family.

Remember The "Littlest Soldiers"

As we approach the Memorial Day weekend, please take time to thank a servicemen or woman, past and present for their service. Without them, we would not enjoy the many freedoms we do today.

Also, please take time to pray and remember our "Littlest Soldiers"

The Littlest Soldiers

The medals on our chests
Are portacaths for meds
Helmets won't stay on
Cause no hair is on our heads.

Our weapons of destruction
We take every day
We fight the battle within us
While we struggle on to play.

We fight with honor and courage
No marine could do as well
We are only little children
Living in this hell.

So bring on the medals
The Purple Hearts of Wars
The Gold Cross, The Silver Star
To place upon our scars.

For We are the Children of Cancer
No one has fought so hard
But every day we struggle on
Our LIFE is our reward.

by Cheryl Jagannathan


Video Tribute To A Few Of Our "Littlest Soldiers"

$6 Million Grant To Duke

PEDIATRIC BRAIN TUMOR FOUNDATION GIVES
$6 MILLION GRANT TO DUKE
$12 million total funding to PBTF Institute at Duke accelerates search for cure

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (May 14, 2008) /PRNewswire/ – The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF) is giving an additional $6 million grant to its research institute at Duke University, bringing total funding for the program to $12 million.

Duke will use the funds to continue to sharpen its research focus on pediatric brain tumors, which are the leading cause of cancer death in children and adolescents. Four out of 10 children with a brain tumor die within five years of diagnosis, a statistic the PBTF intends to improve through its research institute program.

"The goal of this grant is to translate our understanding of childhood brain tumors into novel, less-invasive treatment methods," said Dianne Traynor, PBTF Director of Research Funding and Advocacy.

"The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation Institute at Duke is the largest basic research collaborative in existence for pediatric brain tumors," Traynor continued. "It brings together established brain tumor researchers and scientists using platform technologies developed for other cancer types. Their work utilizes the disciplines of biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, cell biology and developmental biology to better understand childhood brain tumors."

The PBTF Institute at Duke is directed by one of the world's pre-eminent brain tumor researchers, Darell Bigner, M.D., Ph.D. "We're working first to unravel the molecular mechanisms that drive these cancer cells," Bigner said. "Then we can develop new treatments that won't damage the brain the way older treatments do."

Researchers at Duke share their results with their counterparts at the three other PBTF Institutes, housed at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada, and the University of California, San Francisco. Current funding of the entire PBTF Institute program stands at $13 million.

While several PBTF fundraising efforts support this work, most donations come from the Ride for Kids® program, with long-standing sponsorship from the American Honda Motor Company.

About the PBTF
The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation (PBTF), a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Asheville, N.C., is the world's largest non-governmental funder of childhood brain tumor research. Its programs include free educational information about brain tumors, Internet conferences, college scholarships for brain tumor survivors, and Ride for Kids® motorcycle charity events.

Note: When you make a donation to Brown Bag For A Cure, your money goes to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

Help My Dream Become A Reality

I receive email almost daily asking me if I have a child or lost a child to a brain tumor. The answer is no to both questions. Here's my story....

In 2003, I attended an organizational meeting for a Ride For Kids® (RFK) event that was in the planning stages for our area. I immediately jumped onboard with both feet. I have been a volunteer and fund-raiser for the Ride For Kids® / Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation since that day. I was even offered a part time job with the foundation, which I took and loved for 3 years. As of this past September, I no longer work for them.

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity travel to many states and meet so many wonderful families. I can't put into words what the children mean to me. I love each and everyone of you and will miss seeing you more than you know. You will always be in my heart.

To say the least, I was devastated at loosing my job, but at the encouragement of friends, I decided to check into forming my own foundation, so Brown Bag For A Cure was born. No, we are not an official foundation yet, so for 2008 we a raising money for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. Your online donation goes directly to them and checks are made out to them.

Now a whole new world has opened up to me. I have met so many more wonderful families right here on the internet, through carepages, caringbridge, facebook, myspace, blogging, etc. I treasure each one of you and your story. My heart breaks at times and I celebrate your victories.

What is Brown Bag For A Cure? It is a simple concept that came to me in the middle of the night. I know times are hard for many and there are so many worthy charities, so I wanted to create something that everyone could participate in.

My dream is to find 5000 caring individuals who will skip one fast food meal and donate that money to my mission....

5000 x $5.00 = $25,000 for pediatric brain tumor research.

If you can spare $5.00, please help a cause that was born and lives here on the internet. I take no money from your donations.

Brown Bag For A Cure lives in the hearts of the caring people that make this internet community what it is. Whether you are a mom, dad, brother, sister, grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin, neighbor, friend, or just someone who wants to give HOPE to the thousands of children who live each day praying for a medical miracle, please make just a $5.00 donation. Maybe you would like to skip lunch in memory of a child you know, who lost their battle.

My motto is...TEAM...Together Each Accomplishes More!

Please join our TEAM...No we're not doctors...Yes, your donation funds doctors...The clock tics and children die. Every minute and every dollar counts.

A child you will probably never meet may be alive, not just days, but years from now, because you cared enough to brown bag your lunch and donate what you would have spent.

Research is the only way we will ever be able to save our children from this monster called a brain tumor. The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation funds more pediatric brain tumor research than any other organization, other than the federal government.

Once you have attended a Ride For Kids® event, you will be hooked too!

Checks should be made out to the: Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation

Please mail your tax-deductible donation today:

Brown Bag For A Cure/Team Straughn
9282 Monongahela Trail
Ashland, VA 23005

To Honor You

I discovered this poem on another website and wanted to share with all your moms and dads of children who are now Angels.

To Honor You

To honor you, I get up every day
And take a breath
And start another day
Without you in it.

To honor you, I laugh and love
With those who knew your smile,
And the way your eyes sparkled with joy,
Full of life.

To honor you, I take the time
To appreciate everyone I love.
I know now there is no guarantee
Of days or hours spent in their presence.

You are the light of my life,
My gift of love
From our Heavenly Father.

So every day, I vow to make a difference,
Share a smile, live, laugh, and love.
Now I live for us both.
So all I do, I do to honor you,
My precious, beautiful child.

Author Unknown

Note: I vow to Make A Difference and Honor Your Memory by doing all that is within my power to raise funds for research, so one day we will have a cure. You have my promise on this.

LIVESTRONG Day is May 13th. Celebrate LIVESTRONG Day by uniting to fight cancer.

Maybe Tonight, Maybe Tomorrow Lyrics

I heard the news today. It came out of nowhere.

I wish I could run away,but where would I go?

Is this my destiny? Something so unfair... What will become of me?
God only knows.

And they say the road to heaven might lead us back through hell.
Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow, we will win this fight and bury this sorrow.

We're so alive, still holding on, not ready to die, so we LIVESTRONG.

My pride is left for dead, as my world gets shaken.

The thoughts inside my head are so hard to control.

I am staring down the unknown, but one thing is certain.

You could break my body, but you will never break my soul.

And they say the road to heaven might leads us back through hell, but we're holding on for more than stories to tell.

Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow, we will win this fight and bury this sorrow.

We're so alive, still holding on, not ready to die, so we LIVESTRONG.

Today is a great day to brown bag your lunch and donate your lunch money for brain cancer research.

Brain Tumor Action Week

Today is Day 3 of Brain Tumor Action Week. Please watch this Brain Tumor Awareness Video



After watching this video and listening to the words of this song, do you care enough to Brown Bag Your Lunch?

Not one child in this video expected or deserved to get a brain tumor. Not one parent, one brother or sister, grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin or friend asked to have their loved one attacked by this monster!

Pediatric brain tumors strike our children with little warning and no mercy. Why? Who knows? There is no cause or cure.

The federal government funds very little research into searching for a cure either. The Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation is the largest non-governmental funding agency in the world for pediatric brain tumor research. When you make a donation to Brown Bag For A Cure, that is where you donation goes.

So today or tomorrow or next week, when you take a bite out of your burger or whatever is on the menu that day, think about the children with brain tumors. Remember their sweet faces and know there are thousands more just like them. Children who did not ask for this monster to attack them. Children who dream of growing up and becoming a teacher, doctor, dancer, fireman or whatever their dreams are.

Please Brown Bag Your Lunch and make a donation to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. Your donation is tax deductible.

The children in this photo collage now enjoy lunch with God and thousands of other children who fought a brave fight against a brain tumor and lost.

Just A Fast Food Meal

The average fast food meal is $5.00. I remember the days when fast food burger was 15 cents.

I have a mission is to find 5000 people who will give up a fast food meal and donate the $5.00 bucks for pediatric tumor research.

Would you please be a "Hero" to children with a brain tumor. It only takes a couple minutes and $5.00 to become a "Hero". Of course, if you would like to donate more, you will be a "Super Hero".

I started "Brown Bag For A Cure" in an effort to save children with brain tumors, the most deadly of all childhood cancers.

Brain tumors affect the most innocent of all victims, our children. Children who just want to grow up and have a future. And out of the blue, it hits them without warning and no mercy.

Brain tumors are extremely difficult cancer to treat and beat. Thousands of kids fight this battle every day with little guarantee of a future. Why? There is no cure and funding for research is very limited.

The concept is simple...Please brown bag your lunch for a day and donate what you would have spent on a fast food meal for pediatric brain tumor research. Challenge your friends, co-workers, neighbors, etc. to join you. The more "Heroes" the better.

All funds raised through "Brown Bag For A Cure" go directly to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.

There are 2 ways to donate. We have a secure online website www.firstgiving.com/brownbagforcure or you may mail your check or money order, made out to PBTF to:

Brown Bag For A Cure, 9282 Monongahela Tr., Ashland, VA 20005

One lunch at a time, a simple effort to find a cure and remove this horrible disease from the face of the earth.

Please do it for the children....Maybe you know a child you would like to make a donation in honor or memory of.