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| March 2011 |
Help us to Help a Family We are proud to announce that one of our adoptive moms is a candidate for the Iowa Chapter of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s “Woman of the Year!” Erin’s campaign is 10 weeks long and officially began on March 1st. Every dollar Erin raises is one vote toward her being named Woman of the Year, and Abby’s One True Gift is thrilled to be working alongside our dear friend, and cancer survivor, to raise money for Leukemia and Lymphoma research and to give Erin the recognition she deserves. Erin is truly an amazing woman. What she and her husband, Chris, have endured in the past 10 years is remarkable. Erin and Chris have a biological daughter who was born at 24 weeks weighing 1 lb., 1 oz. Baby Ellie was in NICU for four and half months. Erin had HELLP Syndrome and would have died had she not delivered Ellie, and after Ellie was born, Erin’s doctors advised her not have any more children. Upon learning that, Erin and Chris decided to grow their family through adoption. Adopting a child had always been part of Erin and Chris’s plan, but why they wanted to adopt had drastically changed and as Erin said “this just moved up the time table.” They adopted transracially 4 years ago, and they are proud parents to Ellie (8) and Chase (4).
An extremely positive person, with a thriving spirit, here’s a bit more of Erin’s story in her own words: “I know firsthand the effect cancer can have on an individual and a family... My mother died almost 15 years ago of breast cancer, and my older sister, and best friend, died of brain cancer April 13, 2010 at the age of 42. As if that didn’t hit home enough, on April 7, 2010, I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. Cancer has forever changed my life. As a young (I’d like to think!) mother and wife, I never thought I would get cancer. Guess what — I was wrong! Cancer doesn’t discriminate. With a cancer diagnosis comes so many emotions, many of which are negative; however, there are also the undeniable blessings that come along with it, such as an improved ability to prioritize the things in your life and the opportunity to make a difference to those people and those things that are most important to you. As a result of my diagnosis and subsequent victory over the disease, I decided to help raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society — an organization that has helped literally hundreds of thousands of patients and families, who, like me, face the battle of their lives. We CAN beat cancer, but we need your help...please join me in the fight!” As you can probably tell, Erin is an extremely inspirational individual, who has given so much strength and happiness to those around her. Now it’s our turn to give back to her!
Cancer is the most pervasive disease in the world, and we’ve no doubt that everyone reading this right now knows someone or is someone who has been deeply affected by cancer. We have set up a fund to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, all of which will be donated in Erin’s name. If we raise enough money Erin will win the title of “Woman of the Year,” and a mere $10 from each of you significantly increases Erin’s chance of winning. On top of that, every dollar you donate goes towards research for finding cures for Leukemia and Lymphoma. So what have you got to lose? We’ve made it very easy for you to donate by one of three simple ways. 1. Paypal. We’ve set up an account specifically for donations to Erin and the Leukemia and Lymphoma society, so simply create a Paypal account (if you don’t already have one) by going to www.paypal.com and following the instructions after clicking “sign up.” It’s so simple! Once you’ve set up your account, you can send money to abbysotg@gmail.com. 2. Wells Fargo. If you have a Wells Fargo account, you can simply transfer money from your bank account to the account we’ve set up for Erin! The account number is: 5078500831, and then routing number is: 073000228. If you have any questions about this method, feel free to contact us, or your local Wells Fargo banker. 3. Old fashioned snail mail! You can also send a check to our office: Erin’s Fund Every little bit helps more than you know, and we want to do everything we can to honor Erin by raising enough money to make her the “Woman of the Year.” Please forward this information to all of your friends, and let us know if you have any questions or would like more information. Feel free to email us at: info@onetruegift.com, or to give us a call at 515-987-3341. We all know the power adoption has in creating lives. Now let’s work together to save some. Do you have a question for Abby or suggestion for a feature article? Please let us know at abby@onetruegift.com. Any comments or feedback is always appreciated. |
March Birthdays Happy birthday to all our March True Gifts!!!
Book Corner A collection of great readings related to adoption. A Mother for Choco, by Keiko Kasza Born in Our Hearts: Stories of Adoption, by Filis Casey and Marisa Catalina Casey All About Adoption, by Marc Nemiroff How I Was Adopted, by Joanna Cole Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born, by Jamie Lee Curtis Dear Birthmother : Thank You for Our Baby, The Complete Adoption Book, by Laura Beauvais-Godwin Adoption Nation: How the Adoption Revolution Is Transforming America, by Adam Pertman Birthmothers: Women Who Have Relinquished Babies for Adoption Tell Their Stories, by Merry Jones Making Room in Our Hearts: Keeping Family Ties Through Open Adoption, by Micky Duxbury When Adoptions Go Wrong: Psychological And Legal Issues of Adoption Disruption, by Lita Schwartz Follow us on ........
About Our Agency Abby’s One True Gift Adoptions is a full service, licensed adoption agency founded by adoptive parents. After our personal adoption experiences, we wanted to utilize what we had learned by creating an agency that strives to provide the most positive adoption process possible. Our staff is available to provide maximum support from beginning to end, as we work with adoptive families and birth parents nationwide. Having been through the process ourselves, our goal is to meet the needs of birth parents and adoptive parents alike, supporting the individuals involved from all aspects of the adoption process.
If you are interested in the adoption process we encourage you to contact us for more information. |
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