Mentor Monday Message for 1/14/13

Hey Guys!! Happy Mentor Monday!! Please take the time to read this message in its entirety. Thank you!

Congrats to the Disney Participants on a job well done this weekend! The Disney Team raised over $110,000 for LLS! Did you know that each 75% of EACH dollar that you raise is going to blood cancer research and support to patients and families diagnosed with blood cancers?

What you are doing DOES make a difference. The reason I got involved with LLS is because of my dad. Almost 17 years have passed since my father was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Several chemotherapy regimens including ASHAP, CHOP and FND, a high dose chemotherapy followed by a bone marrow transplant, Lymphoma recurrences in 1999, 2001, and 2002, and thousands of prayers later, we thank God every day that He has given us all of this and that my dad is still with us today! Rituxan (rituximab) is a monoclonal antibody, which was approved in 1997 by the FDA. My dad was given this in conjunction with another chemotherapy in 2001 and then began using it as a preventative maintenance drug in 2002. The current cost of this drug without insurance is $18,000 per infusion. He gets this drug in two four-week cycles every six months. It has kept him in remission ever since. My dad was told he would not live to be 45. I am proud to tell you he turns 57 this June.

Approximately every 4 minutes one person in the United States is diagnosed with a blood cancer.

Because of funding raised by Team in Training and the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, drugs like Rituxan have been developed to help patients get past these terrible prognoses. KEEP DOING WHAT YOU ARE DOING! IT WORKS! As you all may or may not know the mentors have some AWESOME FUNdraising stuff in the works for this team!  I mentioned this at the training this week, but will try to reiterate it here…Your support of these events is VITAL to their success. No matter where you are at in your fundraising goals, your support for these events is much appreciated. We are here to help find a cure for cancer, so let’s keep fundraising until that happens!

•  McAlister’s Nights:Everyone who has reached out to me, I have scheduled a night for. If there is anyone who would like to schedule one that has not yet, please email me as soon as possible.
• Team California Pizza Kitchen Night: We are hosting a California Pizza Kitchen night. California pizza kitchen is donating a percentage of sales to our organization. Like the McAlister’s nights, we are required to bring a flyer. Your distribution of these flyers is how we will decipher at the end of the fundraising what money goes to whom. Details on that to follow.
• Mice Racing for Blood Cancer:This will be like trivia nights. You will have your friends, family, supporters buy a table by donating to your fundraising account directly. We believe we will have 20-25 tables available, but obviously will make room for as many as we need. This evening we will need donations for the silent auction.If you know of anyone or are connected to any businesses that can donate, please let us know. Anything that you personally get donated and gets auctioned, the proceeds will go directly to your fundraising account.
•  BC² - Blood Cancer Benefit Concert:  This will be a benefit concert hosted by Sky Music Lounge’s “The Loft” in Chesterfield at Kehrs Mill and Clayton where we will sell tickets (again directly to your fundraising account) and have bands play. All profits from drinks, food, auctions, raffles, etc. will be donated to LLS this evening. We also have secured time at Show Me St. Louis to help promote this event. Again, we will need a few things to auction off this evening.
• Bead Drives- We will be setting up a bead drive for the Mardi Gras parade as well as the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The more people we have in attendance the better.

This week we HIGHLY recommend if you haven’t already, to send out letters to everyone you know. I have spoken to Rich Buckley, and he is waiving the deadline this week, and allowing us to send these out for FREE. So, if you write your letter, print it off, stuff the envelopes, and address them, we will mail them and pay for the postage. You can either contact your mentor or bring your letters to the group training, and we will get them to the LLS office for you.

Please feel free to go to my webpage-because both of my letters, from the previous season and this season, are copied on there. Also, do a google search for a great resource to find example LLS fundraising letters.

Here are some save the dates for you all:

• January 24, 2013-McAlister’s Deli Night for Teammate Allison Brown- LeMay Ferry Location 4:00-9:00 *Bring Flyer
• January 31, 2013-McAlister’s Deli Night for Teammate Kristen Harris- Manchester Location 4:00-9:00  *Bring Flyer
• February 5, 2013-McAlister’s Deli Night for Teammate Laura Wende- Fenton Location 4:00-9:00  *Bring Flyer
• February 8, 2013-MICE RACING FOR BLOOD CANCER- Crestwood Civic Center 7:00 PM *More Details and flyer to come
• February 9, 2013- Mardi Gras Parade Bead Drive – Details, Meeting Place, Time, details to come
• February 10, 2013-California Pizza Kitchen Team Night 11:30 am-8:00 pm Chesterfield Mall  *Bring Flyer
• February 20, 2013-Show Me St. Louis on air- be there at noon. Need up to 10 people in LLS/TNT Gear that day to help promote our Blood Cancer Benefit Concert.
• February 23, 2013- BC²(BLOOD CANCER BENEFIT CONCERT)- The Loft at Sky Music Lounge 7:00 PM-1:00 AM  *More Details and flyer to come
• February, 26, 2013- McAlister's Deli Night for Mentor/Teammate Heather Barcroft Manchester Location 4:00-9:00 *Bring Flyer
• March 16, 2013- St. Patrick’s Day Parade Bead Drive-Details, Meeting Place, Time, details to come
• March 23, 2013 – Fundraiser put on by Coach Kevin West at Innsbrook – more details to follow!

** As we can get them coordinated, we may go down to do a canister drive or bead drive for the Blues Games**

In the works: Scotttrade Center Volunteer nights, Canister Drives at local grocery stores (we’re in the midst of girl scout cookie season—so this is why these are a little less frequent then usual), 50/50 raffles on your personal facebook –please email us for more details on that…
Please, please, please make it your grandest effort to participate in as many of every single one of these events as you can, REGARDLESS of where you are on your fundraising or what your fundraising goal may be. We are looking to raise the most amount of money as a TEAM as possible.

Columbia teammates: I put in an application for Buffalo Wild Wings fundraising night, Schnucks Canister Drive, as well as working to get us on campus for bead drives on the day of Mizzou Basketball games. If anyone of you know the procedure in order to do this, I believe the application I filled out didn’t go very far, so I’m looking for another avenue. I am planning as much as I can remotely. So, whatever you all can do to help, is great!

Let’s do our part to save lives! We are still recruiting. If you have any friends that are considering joining, or on the fence about joining, please send out their information to one of the coaches or Rich Sloan/ Rich Buckley, and we can get them signed up!
Thank you all for everything you are doing!!!! Do not hesitate to reach out to your mentors with any questions, concerns, or anything you need help with at any time!