Anna's Angel Fund Update: March 2004

Anna's Angel Fund Update: March 2004

It's been three months now since we've updated you on Anna's Angel Fund so we thought it was time to fill you in on the latest examples of what your gifts have enabled Anna to do. Here are some of the highlights…

$755 For Gift Certificates to a Mall, 3 Manicures and Dinner
In December, just a few weeks before Christmas, we found out that a family we'd seen at the hospital many times had lost their oldest daughter. We saw the girls' three blonde heads come through those doors many times. Their dad had left them (from what we understand, stating that the strain of the oldest daughter's illness was just too much for him), and so they were left grieving the loss of their husband/daddy as well as their daughter/sister ~ and right at Christmas. Their social worker said that the mom just didn't have the heart to tell them that, on top of everything else, she didn't have the money to buy gifts for Christmas. The girls took it well and insisted that they didn't need gifts this year; that it just wasn't important. But we knew it was and as you can imagine, our hearts just broke hearing this story. But thanks again to all of you angels, they did have Christmas! And they had a blast! They all got gift cards to the mall and spent the day shopping together, getting a manicure and then had dinner together at Ruby Tuesdays! I'm sure, thanks to you, each of them got at least one smile for Christmas that day, too. And what a gift for that mother to see her girls smile.

$4000 To Help Pay For a Simple Burial
This was to help bury, in the simplest way possible, a little 8-year-old friend of Anna's. His family was distraught over losing him to cancer and their grief was compounded by the fact that they could not afford to bury him. But Anna's Angel Fund could. He still does not have a headstone but we may go back later and see if we can help with that as well. This was a very tough loss for Anna and it was so meaningful to her to be able to do something for her friend, even after he was gone.

$62.00 for Prescription Drugs
Anna's Angel Fund paid these for when we learned that the child's parents had refused the prescriptions because of their inability to pay for them. They were paid for and delivered directly to the family at the hospital.

$600 for rent, food and other living expenses
This money was spent on a family who was living in Atlanta while their child was recovering from a bone marrow transplant. The child had been released from the hospital but had to remain in Atlanta for further care and treatments for another month. Their social worker felt that their financial situation was critical.

$800 For Trip to St. Jude's
The family of a three-year-old boy was told that the child was terminal and that nothing else could be done for him. His second bone marrow transplant had failed. His mother could not accept that diagnosis without a second opinion and the doctors here at Egleston referred them to St. Jude's Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Mom was desperately in need of hope but couldn't afford to make the trip and stay in Memphis while he was evaluated. Thanks again to all of you, mom, grandmother and the child went to St. Jude's the last week in February, in search of that hope.

$464 to start spiritual resource library
We'd heard that the chaplain in the AFLAC Cancer Center had a dream of starting a spiritual resource library for the kids and their families and Anna decided to give him a surprise start! She provided him with Teen Bibles, Teen Spanish Bibles, study guides, Jewish Bibles, Catholic Bibles, children's Bibles, children's Spanish Bibles, and approximately eight different Chicken Soup For the Soul books. She also picked out a number of Christian CDs, mostly for the teenagers, but also some Veggie Tales videos for the younger children. (Within two weeks the chaplain told us that he had given away the Teen Bibles we provided. The teens he loaned them to wanted badly to keep them. So we bought more!)

$500 Wal-Mart gift card for food, clothing, etc.
This went to a family with a one-year-old daughter who has just been diagnosed with cancer. She has a tumor on her spine and one in her liver. She has three older brothers. Mom stays at home with the children and dad has lost his job. They have gone from living very comfortably to barely making ends meet. They are without a telephone or cell phone now and have had some very scary moments with their baby because they weren't able to call for help without going to a pay phone. Thanks to Anna's social worker, Anna found out about their situation and we're working on getting them a telephone via Anna's Angel Fund. (We are not sure at this point whether we'll be getting a cell phone or a landline phone.) The Wal-Mart gift card has already been provided along with a precious outfit that Anna wanted to pick out for the little girl!

$550 for a "Teaching Doll"
The child life staff at Egleston is an amazing group of people who work very hard to reduce the amount of anxiety the children feel at the hospital. They explain every procedure before it happens, show them actual photographs of the room they'll be in, what things will look like, and how they might feel before and after surgery or procedures. They use play, distraction, visualization, and many other tools to help the children cope. One of the things they use are teaching dolls. (They used these with Anna before she had surgery to get her port-a-cath and her "g" tube.) They very much need another teaching doll and Anna wanted to provide it for them. (We haven't seen the paperwork but we think this one will demonstrate amputated limbs.)

$237 For More Videos and DVDs
Anna chose 16 more videos and DVDs for the children to watch who are patients in the AFLAC Cancer Center. They depend on these so much for the children who are in-patients or who need distractions during procedures. One of Anna's favorite child life specialists indicated a need for these and suggested a few that the children are asking for that she doesn't have (like "Lion King 1 ½"!).

These are what we consider to be the highlights of the last three months. The more time we spend on our knees, the more the needs and the funds keep coming. God continues to bless this project beyond our wildest dreams. You cannot even begin to imagine what it is like to see the needs we see, and yet be blessed by all of you with the resources to give them hope. Thank you. Thank you so much to each of you who have had a part in giving help and hope to these families. Most of all, thank you so much for giving this opportunity to Anna. The lessons she is learning are immeasurable and so is our gratitude to you. You have helped so much in giving her the ability to stay positive and focused through managing her Angel Fund. She still has quite a journey of chemo and recovery ahead of her and we are so thankful for this opportunity for her.

Again, we hope that you will be blessed as you have blessed these families and our own. We will always be so grateful to every one of you.

Lisa, Larry and Anna

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		*Anna's Angel Fund Update: March 2004* It's been three months now since we've updated you on Anna's Angel Fund so we thought it was time to fill you in on the latest examples of what your gifts have enabled Anna to do. Here are some of the highlights… $755 For Gift Certificates to a Mall, 3 Manicures and Dinner In December, just a few weeks before Christmas, we found out that a family we'd seen at the hospital many times had lost their oldest daughter. We saw the girls' three blonde heads come through those doors many times. Their dad had left them (from what we understand, stating that the strain of the oldest daughter's illness was just too much for him), and so they were left grieving the loss of their husband/daddy as well as their daughter/sister ~ and right at Christmas. Their social worker said that the mom just didn't have the heart to tell them that, on top of everything else, she didn't have the money to buy gifts for Christmas. The girls took it well and insisted that they didn't need gifts this year; that it just wasn't important. But we knew it was and as you can imagine, our hearts just broke hearing this story. But thanks again to all of you angels, they did have Christmas! And they had a blast! They all got gift cards to the mall and spent the day shopping together, getting a manicure and then had dinner together at Ruby Tuesdays! I'm sure, thanks to you, each of them got at least one smile for Christmas that day, too. And what a gift for that mother to see her girls smile. $4000 To Help Pay For a Simple Burial This was to help bury, in the simplest way possible, a little 8-year-old friend of Anna's. His family was distraught over losing him to cancer and their grief was compounded by the fact that they could not afford to bury him. But Anna's Angel Fund could. He still does not have a headstone but we may go back later and see if we can help with that as well. This was a very tough loss for Anna and it was so meaningful to her to be able to do something for her friend, even after he was gone. $62.00 for Prescription Drugs Anna's Angel Fund paid these for when we learned that the child's parents had refused the prescriptions because of their inability to pay for them. They were paid for and delivered directly to the family at the hospital. $600 for rent, food and other living expenses This money was spent on a family who was living in Atlanta while their child was recovering from a bone marrow transplant. The child had been released from the hospital but had to remain in Atlanta for further care and treatments for another month. Their social worker felt that their financial situation was critical. $800 For Trip to St. Jude's The family of a three-year-old boy was told that the child was terminal and that nothing else could be done for him. His second bone marrow transplant had failed. His mother could not accept that diagnosis without a second opinion and the doctors here at Egleston referred them to St. Jude's Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. Mom was desperately in need of hope but couldn't afford to make the trip and stay in Memphis while he was evaluated. Thanks again to all of you, mom, grandmother and the child went to St. Jude's the last week in February, in search of that hope. $464 to start spiritual resource library We'd heard that the chaplain in the AFLAC Cancer Center had a dream of starting a spiritual resource library for the kids and their families and Anna decided to give him a surprise start! She provided him with Teen Bibles, Teen Spanish Bibles, study guides, Jewish Bibles, Catholic Bibles, children's Bibles, children's Spanish Bibles, and approximately eight different Chicken Soup For the Soul books. She also picked out a number of Christian CDs, mostly for the teenagers, but also some Veggie Tales videos for the younger children. (Within two weeks the chaplain told us that he had given away the Teen Bibles we provided. The teens he loaned them to wanted badly to keep them. So we bought more!) $500 Wal-Mart gift card for food, clothing, etc. This went to a family with a one-year-old daughter who has just been diagnosed with cancer. She has a tumor on her spine and one in her liver. She has three older brothers. Mom stays at home with the children and dad has lost his job. They have gone from living very comfortably to barely making ends meet. They are without a telephone or cell phone now and have had some very scary moments with their baby because they weren't able to call for help without going to a pay phone. Thanks to Anna's social worker, Anna found out about their situation and we're working on getting them a telephone via Anna's Angel Fund. (We are not sure at this point whether we'll be getting a cell phone or a landline phone.) The Wal-Mart gift card has already been provided along with a precious outfit that Anna wanted to pick out for the little girl! $550 for a "Teaching Doll" The child life staff at Egleston is an amazing group of people who work very hard to reduce the amount of anxiety the children feel at the hospital. They explain every procedure before it happens, show them actual photographs of the room they'll be in, what things will look like, and how they might feel before and after surgery or procedures. They use play, distraction, visualization, and many other tools to help the children cope. One of the things they use are teaching dolls. (They used these with Anna before she had surgery to get her port-a-cath and her "g" tube.) They very much need another teaching doll and Anna wanted to provide it for them. (We haven't seen the paperwork but we think this one will demonstrate amputated limbs.) $237 For More Videos and DVDs Anna chose 16 more videos and DVDs for the children to watch who are patients in the AFLAC Cancer Center. They depend on these so much for the children who are in-patients or who need distractions during procedures. One of Anna's favorite child life specialists indicated a need for these and suggested a few that the children are asking for that she doesn't have (like "Lion King 1 ½"!). These are what we consider to be the highlights of the last three months. The more time we spend on our knees, the more the needs and the funds keep coming. God continues to bless this project beyond our wildest dreams. You cannot even begin to imagine what it is like to see the needs we see, and yet be blessed by all of you with the resources to give them hope. Thank you. Thank you so much to each of you who have had a part in giving help and hope to these families. Most of all, thank you so much for giving this opportunity to Anna. The lessons she is learning are immeasurable and so is our gratitude to you. You have helped so much in giving her the ability to stay positive and focused through managing her Angel Fund. She still has quite a journey of chemo and recovery ahead of her and we are so thankful for this opportunity for her. Again, we hope that you will be blessed as you have blessed these families and our own. We will always be so grateful to every one of you. Lisa, Larry and Anna Back to Updates Page


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