Cancer Bags

Meet Amy.

She's an incredible person. Amy has always helped me. She was my senior class adviser. (Back then I called her Mrs. Leatham) Being our adviser pretty much meant she had to spend hours helping seniors in high school outside of school. She always did, with a smile on her face. Many times she was more excited than I was. She never seemed to be upset that she had to help. I'm still amazed when we built the Senior Class float. About 4 people showed up to help. By the end, it was just the two of us. If I remember right she went back and finished it by herself because well, I'm not sure why. ha She really is one of the reasons why I wanted to become a teacher.


When we were down at PCMC I received a package from Amy. What she wrote in her note helped me make a tough decision. I still have that letter and refer to what it says quite often.


After the funeral I didn't feel like leaving the house much. She tracked down my phone number, and texted me. She insisted I join her and try Zumba! Zumba has made a big difference in my life. It has been my way to release a lot of negative energy. And who doesn't like to shake it? :) You would love it too if you could see Liz, the instructor! haha She loves what she does. I can't help but smile through the class. For an hour I seem to forget my worries.


Amy also took me to get a pedicure for Cancun. The list goes on and on.


You might wonder how Amy knew what I needed? Well I think it's because she understands trials. Difficult trials. Jace, Amy's 7 year old son was diagnosed with Leukemia a year ago last Saturday on 9/11. It's been a rocky road for their family, but through the whole experience she's been an incredible person to watch and learn from. And Jace, her son has an amazing attitude. It clearly reflects his parents.


On Saturday, on the anniversary of Jace's diagnosis, Amy put together a service project. We created 15 cancer bags. The turnout to help Amy was awesome. So many great people showed up, all bringing different items to donate for the bags. Once we got organized, we made an assembly line and filled the bags.





Remember my post below stating how I didn't necessarily know how to help a family with cancer? Well I've learned one way to help. So, I want to pass on the information. These are the items Amy asked us to bring and we filled a large canvas tote. A bag like this was given to Amy at the hospital by someone who understood. This bag helps them have everything ready for when they visit the hospital. Below is what it took to make.


1 large canvas tote.
thermometer
bandaids
face masks
hand sanitizer
we added a stuffed animal. :)
2 pens
1 fleece blanket
1 binder with tabs for all the information they receive at the hospital.
Granola Bars and gum. All the food needs to be something that will stay good.


Visit Jace's blog here Amy has a wonderful post about Saturday and it shows what Jace has overcome in the last year. Keep the Leatham family in your thoughts and prayers, they still have 2 years of chemo ahead of them.


Amy even gave me a bag to take with me to give to a family here in Rigby. As I feel helpless, and want to help this family I remembered how much all of your prayers helped us. Please pray for this sweet family. Click here to visit their blog.


Thanks Leatham family for letting us serve! We love you!