Relay for Life 2008

On June 7, 2008 Relay for Life was held at Century High School in Bismarck and I was asked to speak about my pink scarves during the opening ceremony. 

I shared my story and added that scarves have been mailed to receipients within the US and to four countries – Israel, London, Sweden and Australia! 

I shared a portion of the letter that my brother, Jay, submitted to the Bismarck Tribune to nominate me for the 2007 Tribune Award.  “I do not know what her reason and motivation is for this project.   She has always been a very generous person and loving sister.  Tara began this program before being diagnosed with cancer and now she wears a scarf too.  She is determined to cover the US in pink scarves and I know she will.  I hope to see her on the Today Show or Oprah one day.  As her older brother, I am very proud of her and all of her accomplishments in life.  But her pink scarf campaign is “over the top”.”

I shard what my daughter, Laura, had written in my guestbook at www.mypinkscarf.com.  “Mom, I’m amazed by you!  You have shown me to follow my dreams and chase down what I believe.  I know I can always come to you for support and that you will always be proud of me no matter how bad I am at things and I love you for that.  I just want to say thank you.  I love you.”

I shared that on June 14th knitters will be gathering at Kirkwood Mall for WWKIP Day.  This event is hosted by the Bismarck/Mandan knitters and will be held from 10:00 to 3:00 in the courtyard.  These women do charity knitting and have donated pink scarves to my project.  For more information about WWKIP, visit http://www.wwkipday.com.   

I ended my speech by sharing The Best Day of My Life (copyright 1993 Gregory M. Lousignont, Ph.D. – reprinted with permission of the author).  “Today, when I awoke, I suddenly realized this is the best day of my life, ever!  There are times when I wondered if I would make it to today, but I did!  And because I did, I’m going to celebrate!  Today I’m going to celebrate what an unbelievable life I have had so far; the accomplishments, the many blessings and yes, even the hardships because they have served to make me stronger.  I will go through this day with my head held high and a happy heart.  I will marvel at God’s seemingly simple gifts:  the morning dew, the sun, the clouds, the trees, the flowers, the birds.  Today, none of those miraculous creations will escape my notice.  Today, I will share my excitement for life with other people.  I’ll make someone smile.  I’ll go out of my way to perform an unexpected act of kindness for someone I don’t even know.  Today, I’ll give a sincere compliment to someone who seems down.  I’ll tell a child how special he/she is, and I’ll tell someone I love just how deeply I care for him/her and how much he/she means to me.  Today is the day I quit worrying about what I don’t have and start being grateful for all the wonderful things God has already given me.  I’ll remember that to worry is just a waste of time because my faith in God and His Divine Plan ensures that everything will be just fine.  And tonight before I go to bed, I’ll go outside and raise my eyes to the heavens.  I will stand in awe at the beauty of the stars and the moon, and I will praise God for these magnificent treasures.  As the day ends and I lay my head down on my pillow, I will thank the Almighty for the best day of my life.  And I will sleep the sleep of a contented child, excited with expectation because I know tomorrow is going to be the best day of my life, ever!”

To view pictures from this year’s relay, go to www.relayblog.com.  Scott, you did an awesome job!