Wings of Hope - Butterfly Release

I wanted to share this information from the Wellness Community Central NJ website. It should be a marvelous National Survivors Day event.

SATURDAY, JUNE 12TH

10:30 a.m. – Noon

(Program and butterfly release at 11:30 a.m.)

Rain date Sunday, June 13th at 3 – 4:30

Join us at The Wellness Community of Central New Jersey for a beautiful celebration as we release 120 majestic monarch butterflies to symbolize the "Wings of Hope".

We invite you to celebrate life by honoring, memorializing or celebrating a loved one. For a donation of $10 (small) or $25 (large) the name of your loved one(s) will be inscribed on individual die-cut butterflies made of a special paper that is embedded with flower seeds. Click here for donation form. Each beautiful cut-out butterfly will be attached to flowing fabric which will be proudly displayed at the event. These butterflies will be available to be take home and planted so that you can enjoy a flurry of butterfly-attracting flowers.

Dee
Every Day is a Blessing!

Fun Times at the Teal Tea

Yesterday, I meet up with my friends Ann and Linda and we had a blast attending The Teal Tea Foundation's 4th Annual Teal Tea at the Hyatt Regency in Princeton, NJ. Last year, when I attended the Tea I was pale and tired and wore a scarf to cover my bald head. This year my hair is back and I enjoyed the good food, delicious teas and wonderful company of other survivors.

All three of us sat at a table captained by Ariel. She is the one who designed that lovely New Orleans themed centerpiece you can see above. Each table's captain created a table which had a unique theme. One table were swing dancers, another the roaring 20's , there were characters from Alice in Wonderland , a prayer fountain, and a backyard swing set. The table winner was "A Night at the Movies" - complete with bowls of popcorn made of flowers and an assortment of candy. Of course teal was the prominent color many of the floral arrangements used on other tables.

I was able to take chances on a number of wonderful prizes at the silent auction. Sadly, I did not win the stain-glass window or the Vera Bradley bag. There were teal t-shirts and jewelry for sale and even specially made teas.

The guest speaker was Dr Wendy Warner who spoke about reducing stress and learning resiliency. We even had time to practice a relaxation technique. I dreamed I was back in Alaska look up at Mount McKinley. Then the Keynote speaker Suzanne Garber, COO of the Americas Region for International SOS Assistance Inc, and ovarian cancer survivor had the audience clapping their hands , laughing and cheering. Mrs. Sharon Parker , Owner of Boehm Porcelain and a cancer survivor unveiled the special vase and porcelain flower created just for the Teal Tea Foundation. It was beautiful!

What a fun day and way to raise funds for ovarian cancer research especially when those funds will be used to support research at the Cancer Institute of NJ.
Great job Jean, Shari and your Teal Tea Committee for a pleasant afternoon.

Dee
Every day is a Blessing!

A wonderful Saturday Morning in Philly

Early yesterday morning I drove to Philadelphia to walk in the Sandy Sprint 5K for the Sandy Rollman Foundation- which raises funds and awareness of ovarian cancer. I met up with my friends, the Lopez family to walk as Team JLO in memory of their wife and mother and my friend, Janice Lopez.

The day started out cool ( 50 degrees) but the sky was the perfect shade of blue. The walk took place in Fairmount Park ( a must see spot in Philly) . The walk started in front of the Touch Me Museum. Across the street from the museum was the registration area, a kids zone and exhibits by different organizations such as Fox Chase, The Phillies & Force.

My favorite stop was the survivor tent. They handed us special gifts, offered us yoga and massage and even a table where you could make a beaded bracelet. I got a chance to meet other survivors - some young , some more mature but all wearing our teal t-shirts and happy to be there to raise awareness and funds for ovarian cancer research . We spoke to each about how long since we were diagnosed , about our husbands and their support , the love of our children and where we were treated. I was amazed at how many women showed up on the steps of the museum to have a group photo. Some women were diagnosed 10+ years ago and some wearing scarves were diagnosed just months ago and were still in chemo.

I understand that close to $150,000 was raised yesterday to help "Women of Teal". Thank you Sandy Rollman Foundation , Robin Cohen and Adriana Way founders and the hundreds of volunteers for such a wonderful event.


Dee
Every Day is a Blessing !

Suggestion Box

I like to follow ovarian cancer related research. This need to read medical journals must come from my years as a research engineer in household product and toothpaste research.

The most recent study I read in the American Journal of Clinical Research was about meat, fish and ovarian cancer risk. This study went back to the results of 2 different population-base control studies in Australia with over 4000 subjects . The conclusion was that low consumption of processed meats and high consumption of white meat and fish will reduce a women's risk for ovarian cancer.

A statement released by the Center that completed the study said "... researchers are still not sure how diet affects cancer risk. “There are many theories, but there is no evidence yet. Processed meat contains compounds that could damage cells and thereby cause cancer. On the other hand, the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish are thought to be good for health in many ways and may possess anti-cancer properties.” " So in essence we should follow the guidelines issued by the USDA- remember the food pyramid- more white meats, fish and veggies and less processed and red meats. I'm good with that.

So why did I call this entry Suggestion Box?I wish sometimes that I could suggest to doctors what type of studies to run. ( Dr G will smile if she reads this.) Plus the American Association for Cancer Research held their annual meeting this week so there is an increase in the release of cancer research results. Here are my suggestions for OC research:

I have a hypothesis that there is a link between ovarian cancer and thyroid disease. I have meet a number of Ovarian Cancer survivors like myself who have had thyroid issues- benign adenomas, cancer or hyperthyroidism. Lets follow a group of women who have thyroid disease and monitor them more closely for Ovarian Cancer along with monitoring a group of women with normal thyroid function for OC. We might also be able to get information if we looked at large studies like the nurses study and see how many women with thyroid disease also had an OC diagnosis .

Still in the area of hormones. (The thyroid produces thyroid hormones and controls metabolism.) I imagine a study in which women with estrogen positive epithelial ovarian cancer tumors are assigned to a group that either receives tamoxifen after completion of treatment or receives a placebo. Tamoxifen is prescribed for breast cancer survivors. Why not look at it for ovarian cancer survivors.

Lastly I'd love MD Andersen to continue its work on stress and ovarian cancer.

If only I had the $ and personnel to design & run a study.

Any one else out there want to share the studies they would like to see? I am sure that I will continue reading research reports.

Dee
Every Day is a Blessing !

Thank You President and Mrs Obama

This article lists the charities that President and Mrs Obama donated to in 2009.

I was pleased to read that the Obama's donated $15,000 to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance(OCNA).

Thank You President and Mrs Obama.

Dee
Every Day is a Blessing!

Teal Tea Fundraiser - 4/20/10

Help us hit a home run at Alstarz!

Tuesday, April 20

2:00 pm to Closing

140 Route 130

Bordentown, NJ

609-291-0200

(Next to Mastoris Diner)

Dinner served until 11:00 pm. Drinks until closing.

Check out the menu here:

http://www.alstarzsportspub.com

A portion of all sales accompanied by this flyer

(exclusive of tax and tips)

will be donated to The Teal Tea Foundation, Inc.

Don't forget to print out this entry and bring with you to make sure a portion of your dinner is donated to the Teal Tea Foundation.

Dee

Every Day is a Blessing!

19,224

On April 9, 2009 I placed a counter on this blog.

19,224 - is the number of times my blog has been visited since that date.
I admit I may visit the blog multiple times a day, especially if I get comments. But even if I did visit 4 times a day for the past year(~1500 counts) I guess others in addition to my family, close friends and official Blog Followers have also visited.

So to everyone out there who reads my blog - Thanks! I hope you find the information helpful and my adventures interesting.

Dee
Every Day is a Blessing!