Monday, December 31, 2007

A New Year's Message


Can I borrow $25?

A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.

SON: 'Daddy, May I ask you a question?'

DAD: 'Yeah sure, what it is?' replied the man.

SON: 'Daddy, how much do you make an hour?'

DAD: 'That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?' the man said angrily.

SON: 'I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?'

DAD: 'If you must know, I make $50 an hour.'

SON: 'Oh,' the little boy replied, with his head down.

SON: 'Daddy, may I please borrow $25?'

The father was furious, 'If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I don't work hard everyday for such childish frivolities.' The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.

The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money? After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $25.00 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door. 'Are you asleep, son?' He asked. 'No daddy, I'm awake,' replied the boy. 'I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier' said the man. 'It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you. Here's the $25 you asked for.'



The little boy sat straight up, smiling. 'Oh, thank you daddy!' He yelled. Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father. 'Why do you want more money if you already have some?' the father grumbled. Because I didn't have enough, but now I do,' the little boy replied. 'Daddy, I have $50 now. Can I buy an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you.'

The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness. It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts. Do remember to share that $50 worth of your time with someone you love.



If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of hours. But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives.

Friday, December 28, 2007

A Christmas Story


It was the day after Christmas at a church in San Francisco. The pastor of the church was looking over the crèche when he noticed that the baby Jesus was missing from among the figures. He hurried outside and saw a little boy with a red wagon and in the wagon was the figure of the little infant Jesus.

So he walked up to the boy and said, "Well, where did you get your passenger, my fine friend?"

The little boy replied, "I got Him at church."

"And why did you take Him?"

The boy explained, "Well, about a week before Christmas I prayed to the little Lord Jesus and I told Him if He would bring me a red wagon for Christmas I would give Him a ride around the block in it."

12/28/2007 Sylvia's UPDATES

The following is an update on Victor's aunt Nell from her husband, uncle Steve - they live in Detroit. We've been praying for Nell..........please continue. And please feel free to send uncle Steve an e-mail (his address is below) to let him know you are praying - I know it will mean so much to him. Thanks. <3>

Sorry for being late on the update but this has been a little difficult the past few days. A couple of days ago, they were starting to wean Nell from theventilator and were down to 8 % and ready to start at 6 %.. Unfortunately, shewasn't quite ready and they had to bump her back up to 10% where she has beenstruggling since. This morning we were having our family conference with theMedical staff . Kathy, Larry, Steve and I were discussing her progress when Dr. Stern said that she was having a problem with her blood counts. Her bloodpressure was low, Hemoglobin and Potassium levels were below normal. He thenmade a decision to send her to Botsford Hospital for more advanced treatment. We all just returned because she is resting comfortable however she will remain in intensive care until her strength comes back. She was receiving a bloodtransfusion while we were there. As of now the prognosis is ok but only timewill tell. Lets pray that when we go back to visit her tomorrow morning, allwill be improved. She is getting excellent care.
Your continued support is very helpful and for that I want to thank you.
Steve
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AUNT MARIE UPDATE

You will just never believe this! Around 1130AM I received a call from the Case Manager saying "your aunt Marie will be discharged today to Country Meadows skilled nursing" - WHAT???.....she explained that the physician who came in to see her this morning said she could be discharged. I told her that before I left this morning I asked for it to be noted in the chart that I wanted a call from the physician - she said she could try to track him down.......I asked if she was aware that aunt Marie was at death's door last night.... She said she can only follow the physician's orders and that aunt Marie would be transported between 2-3 PM. Well, I have to tell you - now don't get me wrong, not by any means is aunt Marie doing "well", but she definitely is much better than last night! She can actually complete a sentence without stopping for three minutes between each word. I am just in amazement. I told aunt Marie I just couldn't believe it........."everyone came to say goodbye to you last night"......her response: "I know. What am I doing wrong???"!!! We got her settled in bed surrounded by her pillows just the way she likes it. She is on the first floor of the assisted living - in the skilled nursing area - and uncle Herman is right upstairs on the second floor. He went up to eat his dinner at 5PM so that he could come down at 530PM to feed aunt Marie. So..................aunt Marie's time to leave this earth is not just yet. I do pray that when it is her time to go that it will be quick and peaceful. Thanks for praying. <3>To: Elaine and Jim Subject: AngelaDate: Fri, 28 Dec 2007 01:48:17 +0000

> She is Sierra Vista Hospital in isolation. She has what they believe to be a > MRSA infection that has gotten into her blood stream. When she was admitted > early this morning, she had 4, I guess you would call them sores, in her legs. > She now has 8 on the legs and 7 in her scalp. She is getting two IV antibiotics > and the doctor told Nancy they will either work or they won't and if they don't > Angela will die. That's it. We need prayers desperately that they work. > For anyone interested: hospital phone number is 520-417-3175. You must ask > for room 118. She is the only one in the room. > > PS Bob has an appointment with the lung guy on January 8 about the mass in > his lung. (That's Nancy's Bob)> > > Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to > all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which > is Christ the Lord> Luke chapter 2

Hello all, Mom just called from North Carolina and asked me to send an email with an update. She had talked to Aunt Nancy a little while ago. Angela has 2 new sores today. She also has 2 old sores that are now open and draining. This is what they want them to do. Mom says they are really draining alot. They believe the second antibiotic is starting to work. Aunt Nancy says her color is not so gray today. She also asked the doctor how long Angela would be in the hospital. The reply was a long time. She has to stay in the hospital until this is all completely out of her system. If I hear any more I will pass the word along. Hope everyone I didn't see had a very Merry Christmas. Hope you all have a wonderful New Year.Love,Kristen

Lisa LEFTIE doing Well!


In a message dated 12/27/2007 2:48:44 P.M. Central Standard Time, LisaLeftie writes:
Hello Rick:

I am doing pretty good. Had my first chemo treatment a little over a week ago. Will have them every 3 weeks for a while. Probably will go back to work soon Will talk to my oncologist to find out if its ok.
I had a nice Christmas. Mom cooked, the food was great. Talk to you soon

Lisa

Logan, the Sky Angel Cowboy!

This call to a radio station takes about 3 minutes of your time. Got some time to spare for a GREAT message? Click this link...

http://youtube.com/watch?v=zCdZwitrNoY

UPDATE: Prayers for Paul Walker WORKING!!!!



UPDATE 12/28/2007

We had an absolutely wonderful Christmas. On Christmas Eve we had Amy, Aaron, and Calvin, Andrew, and Marcia's family for dinner after attending church at 4:00 that afternoon. Amy, Aaron, and Calvin decided to spend the night with us Christmas Eve which was a real treat. Andrew came the next morning for brunch. We spent a relaxing and enjoyable Christmas with the kids.

Paul continues to feel better which is a true blessing. He has been able to almost eliminate the drugs that he takes for breakthrough pain. His extended release oxycontin is handling the pain at this point. He is much more mobile and is actually able to do a few things and enjoy life a little. The pain medication still causes some fuzziness, forgetfulness, and confusion. His hemoglobin is still low which causes a lot of fatigue, and he is still isn't driving; but it is all so much better than it was. He is continuing on short term disability.

We spent today at KU Cancer Center. Paul had labs at 10:30 which ran late, then a 2 hour bone strengthening infusion which ran late, then a 1:00 appointment with his doctor which ran late....so we finally got out a little after 4:00 Anyway, the news was good. His labs all point to the fact that his drug therapy is fighting the myeloma. All of his "numbers" have greatly improved since he started the drugs. On Monday, he started his third cycle of treatment. At this point, it looks as if his stem cell transplant will be at the end of February after his fourth cycle of treatment; but, of course, that is subject to change.

Our appointment at Mayo is January 2 for a consult. We will have to decide then whether or not to have the transplant at Mayo or at KU. KU told us today that their mortality rate for stem cell transplants for myeloma patients is zero which was reassuring. I hope after our visit to Mayo, there will be something that makes the decision easier one way or the other. The Mayo reputation is pretty persuasive, but there are certainly advantages to having the procedure at home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UPDATE 12/06/2007
Rick, sorry it has taken so long to get you an update. The last week or so
has been quite eventful.

One of the potential side effects of one of the treatment drugs is blood
clotting. In fact, aspirin is prescribed to help thin the blood. Well, I
still managed to get a clot in my calf. They did a sonagram on the calf (it
is not pregnant) to confirm and then they prescribed a blood thinner called
Coumadin. At this point I believe the clot has disolved but I will still
need to take the Coumadin for a while.

Also, the pain level from the cancer has increased to the point that they
increased my pain med dosage (Oxycodone) from 40 mg to 60.

I am now on a short term medical disibility leave of absence from work which
has been a lifesaver. There is really no way I could be going in to work
these days.

The good news is that after the first month of this drug treatment program,
the Dr. is convinced that it is working. The diagnostics are changing and
pointing in the direction I need them to go. So at this point, it looks
like I am on target for the stem cell transplant, hopefully at Mayo,
sometime early 2008. This is what I have been mostly concerned about - that
the treatment was not working and we were wasting time until we found a plan
that did work. I truly believe that the prayers from you and this group, as
well as others that are praying for me are making a real difference.

God bless you all for the prayers you have contributedd for this cause. I
very truly appreciate them greatly.

Thanks,

Paul Walker
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Update: 12/2/2007
Paul had his second appointment at KU yesterday. He had additional tests run the week before. We had good news and bad news. The good news is that the Revlimid is starting to work on the cancer. The bad news is that he has multiple lytic lesions in his skull (described as punched out holes), and the rest of his bones are thinning. I guess the good news there is that there are not currently lytic lesions on any other bones. He will now be starting monthly infusions of Aredia, a bone strengthener. He is still in a lot of pain. He wasn't sure if he could make it to work today. He is on extended release oxycontin, and they encouraged him to take smaller dosage oxycontin, as needed.

Linda


Update: 11/31/2007

Paul's doctor was not able to get him into Mayo any sooner than the December opening; and in fact, the first opening that they have now is January 2. We change insurance January 1, so I am not sure how that will work out. I am thinking that since Mayo didn't think that it was necessary to get him in earlier, that they don't think it is a crisis - which I am thinking is actually a good sign. Paul is starting on his induction drugs this week. Hopefully they will soon improve his physical symptoms. He is having a lot of pretty severe bone pain even though he is taking hydrocodone. He is not really able to do much besides go to and from work, and that isn't very easy.

We went to KU and had a long consult with a Bone Marrow Transplant doctor and a coordinator on Monday. We got a lot of good, but scary, information. At least we are more informed, and they also gave us a lot of material to read. We still would like to have the transplant done at Mayo, but are keeping our options open at KU. Amazingly, stem cell transplants are done on an outpatient basis. They will not do them unless he has a caretaker 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for the first month. It would be at least two months before he would be able to go back to work, and then probably only part time.

Just thought I'd let you all know the most recent...

Continue with the prayers.

Linda

UPDATE: 10/26/2007

We received the results of Paul's tests from the oncologist. Unfortunately, the myeloma is progressing at a very fast rate. Paul had been having bone pain in his ribs, back and hips since Hawaii. They originally thought that it was due to muscle strains from Hawaii because it came on so suddenly. The most recent tests show that it is myeloma. The doctor is recommending starting immediately on induction drugs to prepare for a stem cell transplant. It usually takes two-four months of these oral drugs to reduce the myeloma before stem cells can be harvested. That is followed by several days of IV high dose chemo therapy, and then the stem cell transplant.

After much research in the last couple of months, we have decided that we would like to go to Mayo Clinic for a consultation and then the stem cell transplant. Unfortunately, they have no openings for consult until December. Our oncologist here is checking with them to see if they can see us sooner. Regardless, Paul will probably be starting the induction drugs very soon. The oncologist says there are very few side effects with these drugs, and that they should improve his symptoms.

Please keep us in your prayers.

Linda

FIRST REQUEST: 9/3/2007
Paul Walker is a longtime friend of mine dating back to our days at Mizzou, where he was president of a business fraternity that I joined. We recently hooked up again, with his wife "Kooch" his college sweetheart. We met for dinner last year and later went to a Mizzou football game. Paul likes to fish, so we tarted making plans to do things occasionally since we are now living in the same area....then this...and the reason I ask for your prayers for Paul...


I am a little overdue on my latest update. Paul finished his 20 radiation treatments on July 26 and has been feeling great. Two weeks ago, he had a visit with his hematologist/oncologist. At that appointment, we found out the results of a cytogenetics test that was done in June. Due to the myeloma, he has doubles of some chromosomes and the absence of chromosome 13. The absence of chromosome 13 points to a more aggressive myeloma with a more unfavorable prognosis. Paul's doctor referred him to KU for a second opinion and stem cell consult. We went to that appointment last Tuesday. The doctor expects the myeloma to need more aggressive treatment within months; originally we had been told that it would probably be years. He has ordered additional staging tests to see how things are progressing. When it looks like things are advancing, the most likely treatment will be several cycles of chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant with Paul's own stem cells (autologous) followed a few weeks or months later by a stem cell transplant from a donor (allogenic). An allogenic transplant has many more complications than an autologous transplant.

As I said before, Paul still feels fine. We are enjoying spending lots of time with Calvin who is five weeks old now; and, of course, the cutest and sweetest baby ever. We are also getting ready for our big trip to Hawaii later in September.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Linda

Sylvia's Requests and Updates

Numerous Updates 12/28/2007

In a message dated 12/28/2007 7:19:47 A.M. Central Standard Time, smp75@msn.com writes:

Good morning everyone.....I just got in from staying the night with aunt Marie. Last evening Michele and I went over to visit and to then take uncle Herman back to Country Meadows. When I arrived, aunt Marie did not look good at all....sitting in the chair, slumped........just looking so sad. She started crying, getting very upset, asking why is she still here....."Sylvia, I am so, so weak that I cannot do anything for myself anymore. I am so weak that I can't even pray. Please ask the girls to pray........for me to go home". She really hasn't been eating.........drinking is minimal. She seemed to have really gone downhill from the day before.........each day she declines a bit more. She kept asking why she is still here. I told her that she probably still had things to teach us. Then she felt bad that Michele was there..........she should be home........I should be home...........I explained to her that that is what Michele is going to school for..........to help people who are dying..........I told her that even in her dying she was still teaching. She squeezed my hand. Her oxygen level kept dropping.......getting her in to bed just wipes her out and I assumed that was why.........but her nurse, Sheri, who was so compassionate, was quite concerned. She checked with another nurse........called the doctor. During this time aunt Marie was just saying she wanted to go........and then she said we should go home..........I told her I would stay the night with her so that she wouldn't be alone........she was upset, saying I had to go to work, etc....I told her work could wait. I really did think that this would be the night.........I told her it was okay for her to go home too. I told her so many people were there waiting to see her - she said "I hope so"..... She said "uncle Herman will be okay. I found a nice place for him".....I told her to be sure to fill my dad in on everyone, and to tell uncle Rudy I received the butterfly (while uncle Rudy was dying he told me he would send a sign - shortly after he died - it was 1/13 - a butterfly appeared in our living room) - then aunt Marie asked "was it one or two butterflies"......I told her it was one.......but that our Christmas tree was still up (it was thought that the chrysalis came in on our Christmas tree that year) and aunt Marie shook her head yes. Maybe I overstepped my boundaries, but I did call the rest of the family who all came in. Everyone said their goodbyes and then aunt Marie chased them home. It was just me and uncle Herman. Uncle Herman wanted to stay. So I went down to the waiting area and caught a few winks - gave them some private time. I guess it was about 1230 I went back in....uncle Herman was sleeping.....aunt Marie was wide awake........she was having trouble getting settled...........her shortness of breath seemed intensified...........yet she said it wasn't bad enough to want any medication to help calm her..........she made me giggle......I laid beside her on the bed.........she would drift off, then almost startle herself waking up........she would look over at me and say "am I still breathing?". God love her. She is ready. Quite frequently through the night she wanted a sip of her drink, so I was really glad that we stayed. She seemed really calm and peaceful around 630AM.....poor uncle Herman.........he didn't get much sleep...........both of us "tossed and turned"...........I asked her if it would be okay for me to take uncle Herman back to Country Meadows so that he could get a little bit of rest.........."oh yes, I'll be okay......you just go........really, I’m okay now"...........so I took uncle Herman back........hopefully he is getting some rest..........and now I am going to do the same. Please, please keep praying............for whatever God is waiting for.......... : ) <3 br="">
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kjgunder@comcast.net <kjgunder@comcast.net>

Sylvia, Could you please add my cousin to the prayer chain? We have been praying for her and she still needs our help. Here is the message my mom sent me. Thanks. Aunt Nancy called again at 11 and said they were transferring her to ICU. She has been having a very bad reaction to the new medicine but now has either cellulitis or MRSA and whatever it is it is progressing rapidly. She needs IV medicines for that plus she is dehydrated from her violent reaction to the new stuff. I told Aunt Nancy I would call her today but don't know when I'll get hold of her since you can't have cell phones on in the hospital. I will let you know as soon as I do.laurie d

<laed1225@yahoo.com> wrote:

Please let us know - what is wrong? Is it bad? Can icall her?--- Joan Myles wrote:> She is in the ER now (9:30 PM) and is going to be> admitted. I'll let you know what there is to know as> soon as I do.> > Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of> great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto> you is born this day in the city of David a Savior,> which is Christ the Lord> Luke chapter 2

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A VERY NEAT STORY FROM CAROLE YEAGER:

Hi Syl,

Do you remember when I wrote how upset I was because my friend Louise Wagner passed away? I was shedding a few tears the day before Christmas for several of my friends who were taken home in the last month, then thinking of all my family and the wonderful memories of Christmas pasts, and they are all gone now, then I couldn't stop thinking of Louise. She passed so suddenly. So I went to my email and was quite shocked. There was an email from Louise. When I read it, she had sent this 11/20th and I never received it until 12/24, telling me that she has a new e-mail address and was so happy to be able to send this on because she hadn't been able to get her e-mails for over two weeks. I saved this because no one will think this is real. It took my breathe away. I said O.K. Lord I got the message, she is with you and very happy. What a wonderful feeling it is to have so much faith. Love you, Carole Y

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Numerous Updates 12/12 to 12/26/2007

12/26

dturks510@msn.com
Hi Sylvia,

Can you please add Micah Piccirilli to the prayer chain. He is the father of one of Sara's class mates. I just received an email from the school asking for prayers for him and his family. He is in the hospital with a serious heart condition. He has two younger brothers.

thanks

Debbie
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PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY FOR MY AUNT MARIE.............SHE IS STILL IN THE HOSPITAL AND SO VERY WEAK. SHE JUST WANTS TO GO "HOME" AND CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY SHE IS STILL HERE. CHRISTMAS DAY WAS A ROUGH ONE FOR HER.......UNCLE HERMAN WAS GOING TO COME TO OUR HOME FOR A COUPLE HOURS, HOWEVER WHEN WE STOPPED TO VISIT WITH AUNT MARIE BEFORE HEADING OVER TO OUR HOUSE, HE JUST COULDN'T LEAVE HER AFTER SEEING HOW BAD SHE WAS FEELING. I CAME HOME THEN AND PUT TOGETHER A FEW PLATTERS OF FOOD AND VICTOR AND MEGHAN RAN IT OVER TO THEM....BUT AUNT MARIE'S APPETITE ISN'T THE BEST RIGHT NOW. AND PRAY FOR UNCLE HERMAN TOO....THIS IS SO HARD ON HIM ALSO. thanks. <3 href="mailto:tmoore@enter.net" title="mailto:tmoore@enter.net">tmoore@enter.net

Please pray for Marion's daughter Karen, who has had so many health problems, & is going to undergo some kind of spinal test on Thurs. God bless. Love, Norine

Dear Ones,

I just received a call from Tom's sister about her oldest son, Eddie, who was run over by a car last night. I don't know all the details, but he was out with friends & somehow wound up under a car's tire. He's in the hospital & needs our prayers, as does his poor mom. Thank you & God bless.

Love,
Norine

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12/20

Four year old Lauren Flood passed away yesterday - she is the granddaughter of one of our patients.......please keep all of Lauren's family and friends in your prayers.

Also, Frannie Schantz, a long time parishioner of St. Thomas More who volunteered with me on Thursdays taking Communion to the patients and also a member of the No One Dies Alone
program at Lehigh Valley Hospital Center died last evening. Please keep her family in your prayers. Tough time of year. <3 href="mailto:bcnatown@aol.com" title="mailto:bcnatown@aol.com">bcnatown@aol.com <bcnatown@aol.com>
HI Everyone:Please pray for my dad. He fell on Friday and has a compression fracture in his back. He will be having surgery tomorrow morning-midday. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.Betty
****************************************************************************************************************************

Karen Rumore <krumore@yahoo.com>
Hi again,

I'm asking for your prayers again, this time for my friend Sharon and her family. Sharon's Dad died this morning and she'd already lost her Mom years ago. Sharon was very close to her Dad and is taking this very hard.

Please keep them in your prayers and pray for the repose of Mr. Adams soul.

Thank you,
Karen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12/18

Aunt Marie is back in the hospital.......she's at LVH-Muhlenberg with congestive heart failure, possible pneumonia.....when I went to visit her on Monday she looked terrible.....and so very weak....I called the dr. - told the nurses I was taking her as she's been declining since I was there on Friday - Dr. Ehrig said to bring her in at 445pm - from there aunt Marie was a direct admission. The swelling in her legs has gone down significantly, but she was still so very weak today. Please keep her and uncle Herman in your prayers.

***********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

These prayer requests come from Meghan....

Hello - Please pray for my friend Kelly - her mom was diagnosed with colon cancer a month or so ago... it has gotten worse, and has spread, almost to her lymphs but they are keeping an eye on it and called for intense radiation... 5 hours 5 days a week. Also my room mate Carissa - who is interviewing for a real job, so pray someone hires her! She is bar tending a high class bar now to hold her off. And her grandfather passed away this morning. I don't know if he was sick or anything and haven't heard of anything in the past, I just received a txt from her saying he passed around 1:30am and that she knows he is in a better place. that was it. -- "For the Glory"Meghan R. Pituch The Pennsylvania State University: BA - Art; (610) 597.2936mrpituch@gmail.comhttp://mrpituch.googlepages.com/

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Whalon, Kelee A <kelee.a.whalon@lmco.com>
Please keep in your prayers the mom of a co-worker who was just diagnosed with lymphatic (?sp) cancer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12/16

Robyn S <robspears@mailstation.com>

Thank you Sylvia. Sorry I couldn't get back to you on that day. LLLOOONNNGGG day. Mom went in prepared and calm (or she always says she's calm but we girls know she stews internally). Her blood pressure was literally OFF THE CHARTS. They got her calmed down and ready at 10:30am and in she went. She could of course feel all the snaking and watch it on the screen and was nervous as they got to the carotid arteries in the neck area and couldn't move. Finally when all said and done, and back in recovery and coming around, was ready to have supper and then they'd send her home. Well, she developed an allergic reaction and not sure if it was from the IV or the dye used....so they are checking on that. She literally was itchy from the inside out and rash all over. Benedryl and ointments and such and finally by Thursday night after being up most all Wed. night, she was calm and restful and plan to turn in early (by 10pm). She had sent my sister that stayed with her (the nurse) home. By Friday morn she sounded much more like her ol' self. She went for blood draw, the 2 doctors are discussing the next stop. The tipsyness is NOT from the left back artery to the brain at 40-50% blocked. The subclavian main from the heart is 80% blocked. The determination will be made this next week as to what to do. Always at holiday time so we're being patient. Mom said she's calm. So keep the good tho'ts please.

Allyson's testing was 4 hrs in a locked down area as they leave all belongings in the main area and are given only paper and pencil upon entering in case they need to work out some math and treatment plans before answering on the computer. She called me about 4:45pm yesterday relieved to be done and hopeful for the scores. She may know by Monday and up to 2 weeks. We are hopeful for the sooner.

Thanks so much for the tho'ts and prayers and we hope your Mom had a great day on Thursday and enjoyed her suprise this weekend.

Blizzarding and cold, but gorgeous and Christmas-like.....love, Robyn********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************


Hi Everyone,

I returned home from mass today to a phone call I could have never anticipated. Peter Rudegeair, the Catholic psychologist whom I began working for over 2 years ago was killed last night in a car accident. Peter's children range in age from 6-16 and, thank God, his wife is extremely faith-filled. By the grace of God, she was already able to say today that this was his time and part of the Lord's greater plan. Please pray for the repose of Peter's soul and for his wife, Karen, and their children.

Thank you,
In Christ Our Life,
Karen

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************Dear Ones,

An old friend who doesn't live in the Lehigh Valley is looking for a good cognitive therapist who is located down this way. He doesn't feel confident in someone from the small town he lives in & would rather head this way to Allentown, Bethlehem,etc. So, I'm looking for some suggestions or referrals if any of you can recommend a good therapist. From what he told me, a cognitive therapist uses talk therapy, not just automatic medication for anxiety or depression. This friend has had some episodes of anxiety/dep over the past 20 years & recognizes his symptoms showing up again, so I'm so pleased he reached out for help. I'd really appreciate any help you can offer about a therapist you know or have heard is good so I can recommend them to him. Thanks so much & God bless.
Love,
Norine
P.S.-Sylvia, would you think Becky might be able to refer someone? As a hospital chaplain, she may hear about, or even meet, some therapists she might think would be good.


MARILYN RESPONDED THAT PERHAPS RICK SHALL WOULD BE GOOD..........BERNIE, DO YOU BY CHANCE HAVE ANY FEEDBACK ON THAT? KAREN R, PERHAPS YOU HAVE A
SUGGESTION? - IS THIS AN AREA OF YOUR EXPERTISE?


******************************************************************************************************************************
Paul Kita <kitapc@rcn.com>
Season's Greetings Everyone, With each passing day, we usually, without fail, receive a request to pray for someone or something. All of us take these requests seriously and provide those much needed prayers. As a result these petitions are answered by God for us, in his own special way. Sometimes we receive the answer when we least expect it, other times we watch the answer unfold before our very eyes. Whatever the case, it is all made possible because of those precious moments that we spend praying to God on behalf of others. With that being said, we humbly approach you and ask if you could spare at least one more moment a day for one more prayer for our daughter Megan. Megan has been suffering for the last 3 years with jaw pain, which at times ranges from uncomfortable to excruciating. The causes of this ailment range from a multitude of things including damaged or injured tendons, ligaments, or cartilage disk, arthritis, contracted muscles and pinched nerves, just to name a few. Over the past few years she's been to pain management doctors, oral surgeons and physical therapists with limited results. For the past six months she has been going to a doctor renowned in treating this kind of ailment. We were very hopeful of a positive outcome for Megan as the many other symptoms associated with the jaw pain, such as head aches, neck aches, jaw clicking, and ear pain, were disappearing one at a time. However, in the last 2 months, the treatment has run into an obstacle in that the jaw pain is not going away as the doctor figured it should. This past Tuesday, Megan received her last dose of medicine, injected 6 times directly into the jaw bone and surrounding areas, a definitely painful experience. These injections, coupled with two more weeks of therapy are the last steps of non-invasive treatment. Should this treatment not succeed in removing the pain completely, then the next course of action, based on this doctor's experience, would be surgery on the jaw. We're not sure if that's the right thing to do as there are still other theories and alternatives out there. But we're hoping not to get to that point. And this is where our request for prayer comes in. Would you please pray that the last round of injections coupled with the next few weeks of therapy will be enough to eliminate completely the jaw pain that Megan has had over the past few years? As all of you with children know, there is nothing more painful than to watch one of your children suffer for whatever the reason. We believe that the prayers will not only help Megan, but they will help us too. Thank you, and Merry ChristmasLove and Peace, Marie and Paul

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12/14

kjgunder@comcast.net <kjgunder@comcast.net>

Hi Sylvia, I have a couple of prayer requests to pass along. It hasn't been a good couple of months. In October my friend, Michelle's father passed away. He had been suffering from cancer and it is a blessing that he is no longer in pain. My prayer request is for Michelle. She has been depressed for some time even before her fathers death and it is really bad now. We are helping her but she sure could use some prayer help. In November, one of my bosses died suddenly at the age of 40. It has been a very difficult time for us at the office as we mourn the loss of our friend and try to pick up the pieces. With tax season just around the corner it has added even more stress on all of us. He was a partner who worked 70 hours or more a week during the season. We have all agreed to work extra in light of the situation. Please pray that our office will be able to handle the stress and having to inform so many clients who may not have heard of the news. Last week one of Julia's classmates mother was in a bad car accident. She is the mother of 4 boys the youngest one being 2 months old. She has a lacerated liver and 2 broken legs. Jen is still in the hospital and they say it may be 6 to 8 months before she can walk again. She had to stop breast feeding and isn't able to even see her children every day. The hospital is a good 30 minute drive from here. Please pray that they are able to get through this difficult situation. Some friends of our, Cory and Amber, had a baby girl last week. She was having difficulty breathing so is in the hospital. I heard she may come home today. On Monday their 5 year old boy had a stroke. It affected his left side. They believe he will recover with little side affects. However, they have no idea what caused it or if there are any other issues. Last I heard they were still running some tests. I cannot image having 2 children in the hospital at the same time. They also have another boy, I cannot remember his age but he is young. As you can see, we are in desperate need of some prayers. I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart and know the family do also. Thank you.

****************************************************************************************************************************

AND IT'S ALWAYS SO GOOD TO HAVE AN UPDATE WITH NEWS TO UPLIFT US!

Dawn Zucca <rosejellyjakesplace@msn.com>

For those for you who have been looking for a Peter update/Christmas Miracle to share with your prayer partners and congregations...try this one on for size. We just received an e-mail from Peter's oncologist in NY that he considers him a 100% cure from his Rhabdomyosarcoma!

If you ask Peter what Dr. Wexler say's about him he says, "I'm a miracle" "All my bad cells are gone forever"

"I'm cured"

Oh beautiful star of Bethlehem shine on!

Thank you for your love and support. His web site is still available at www.caringbridge.org/pa/peter.

Dawn

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12/13

I have periodically asked prayers for a woman named Peggy who lives in St. Louis MO and is undergoing treatment for cancer.....the original prayer request was received from Bock quite some time back....this is what Peggy wrote yesterday.....thought you would all find it such a "GODincident" as Mrs. G. says, or God sighting as Nina P would say.....It also brought back the very special memory of a moment I had at the grocery store just after my brother Stephen's accident.....I would ask strangers on the street to pray for Stephen.....I probably shared this story before, so forgive my repeating it.....standing at the deli counter.....next to me was a mom and her three children who were in their school uniforms - I told them about Stephen and asked if they would pray for him.....well this mom asked if I would mind that they pray with me at that moment............so right there at the deli counter this mom and her children put their hands on me and prayed out loud for Stephen's complete healing....I will never forget it. <3>

My mom is going in on Friday for kidney stones to be removed. There's two and one apparently is large and not in a good location. She's 80 now and getting very fragile. Pray my dad does well thru out this. He's getting more confused everyday and forgetful. He's very scared. Thanks Bev
**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

Could you please pass along a prayer request. A co-worker has cancer of thyroid. Her name is Darlene and she lives with her husband and 2 children. Her thyroid was recently removed and she is now on a special diet for two weeks to clear her system and perscribe new medications, then she will have radiation. Her spirits are good and she is still working. Please pray for recovery and good doctors. Thank you.

Also our son, Kevin, is now stationed at Pearl Harbor, I know tough duty. But he is in a high stress field so please keep him in your prayers. He is on sub duty and his sub in in dry dock and they are in the process of rebuilding. Long days, including overnight every 3 days. Of course, he won't be home for Christmas so here is his address in case anyone would like to send him a card.

Kevin Cramsey
1410 Pierce St.
Unit #77
Pearl Harbor, HI 96860-4622

You all are in my heart and prayers. thanks, Yvonne

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************


Hi Syl,

Please pass on a couple of prayer requests. Joe Petrella, who had 2 strokes and is paralyzed on one side. He is a fellow Serran. Also for Joe Hartmans brother in law, who had a colonoscopy last week, and worried about results. Thank you so much. I don't remember if I said thank you for the offer to pick me up for the prayer group xmas party. My older daughter had a very bad abcess in her mouth, that went down her throat. She was unable to chew or swollow pills . I didn't want to leave her alone. I had to make sure her breathing was not restricked overnight. If its not one thing its another, but God is always there for us. Thank you for passing on my PR's. Love you, Carole Y.

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
THIS UPDATE ON AUNT NELL IS FROM OUR UNCLE STEVE WHO LIVES IN MICHIGAN

Steve Pituch

Hi,
--There is sill no improvement in your Nell's condition. She continues to struggle with the breathing and is some discomfort. When Larry and I visit, she is somewhat sleepy in that they have to give her something to ease the pain. While we were there today, they gave her Vicodin and Xanax. Earlier they gave her some Tylenol and it does remove any stressful condition. We just have to be patient because they have confidence that she is getting stronger. They keep mittens on her hands to keep her from trying to pull out the tube.

On last Friday, December 7th, she was transferred from St. Joseph Hospital in Ann Arbor to the Farmington Health Care Center, 34225 Grand River Ave, Farmington, Mi. 48335 Room #213-1. This is about 7 mile from my house compared to Ann Arbor that is 28 miles away.

It appears that they could only keep her at the Specialty Hospital until a certain plateau was reached and Nell must have accomplished that. Now, she is still on the ventilator and the intent is to wean her from machine so they could remove the tube and get her to breathing on her own. So far, she has only been breathing on her own for about 12 hours and then has difficulty continuing on. She must be free of the machine for 48 hours before she can have the tube removed. As of now, she is not close. She just can't seem to get strong enough yet but we are continuing to pray for her recovery. Love, Steve

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UPDATE: 12/06/2007

Cmycross@aol.com <Cmycross@aol.com>
Good morning Syl,

Please add Loretta Hartman to our prayer list. She is having difficulty breathing and is restricted to how much walking she may do. So many know Loretta for her wonderful faith and involvement with curcio. Joe asked for prayers for her. Love you, Carole Y.**************************************************************************************************************************Marilyn Cassidy <cassidym@ptd.net>

Hi Loves,

Renee called late this evening asking for prayers for her friend, Christine Bramson, for whom we prayed in the past for her twins, then for her son who got malaria shortly upon arriving in Africa. She's taking her medical boards tomorrow, as well as Suzy's hubby. By the way, this last trip to Malawi was supposed to be long term; they were having a house built for themselves, their children and the nanny/teacher, and the religious organization head (christian missionary) decided he wanted his own friend in that house, so after moving family and belongings to Malawi, they were left without a job and housing. Christine and Brian are both doctors doing missionary work. I forgot to ask Renee for an update on whether they found work in another area. More later.

My niece Michele Ball said the rest of the breast tumor was removed, and she will start chemo in Jan. She's home, and feels o.k. and hopeful.

Also, please pray for my co-worker who lost her key ring with lots of important keys on it. Thanks. M

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************


Karen Rumore <krumore@yahoo.com>

Dear Friends in Christ,

My mother in law has been a widower for about 7 years. She meet a man from church who has also been a widower for many years. They were married in April of this year. To find someone to share your life with at 75 years old is pretty wonderful. They just found out that Michael has an aneurysms in his abdomin and needs to have surgery the day after Christmas. Please keep Michael and my mother in law Alice in your prayers. They both have a very strong faith, Mom said Michael has placed this in Gods hands.

God Bless
Karen

*************************************************************************************
UPDATE 12/05/2007
Please say a little prayer for Jim on Thursday morning. He is retaking (every 10 years) his General Surgery Boards and is a bit nervous. Thanks suzy

*************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Nancy Iorio called with the following prayer request.....this young girl in her late 20's is the daughter of her good friends from the Poconos ........(BOCK, WOULD YOU PLEASE PUT THIS ON SEPARATELY AS URGENT?)

Diane Davis........has had two transplants.....was given medication for a sinus infection that conflicted with her kidney medication and now all of her organs are shutting down..........please, please pray for a miracle for Diane........and for her parents, who are so distraught.

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Thank you for the prayers for Meghan......she e-mailed me with an update this afternoon.......please continue the prayers as she makes a decision this week with regard to being asked to work on a different project.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

o'connellm@dnb.com

Please keep Stacey and her family in your prayers....

Dear Mary,

Thank you so much for the prayers and for the time that you took to email me and share Stacey's intercession to so many people. I am sorry to say that Stacey and Joey's son, John Christian was born a few weeks ago, was baptized immediately and died shortly after his birth. The family chose to keep the news private until he had been buried and they had time to mourn his loss. Stacey is heading to the doctor soon and finding out the status of her own battle with cancer. She returned to her chemo/treatment shortly after John's birth and can always use prayers as she faces this next hurdle. I am very confident that the family would appreciate continued prayer and condolences.

Please keep up the prayers for this family.
Peace - Erin
***********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
We prayed for young Parker Lutz from Macungie who died a few weeks ago .....his mom and dad are considering attending a Compassionate Friends meeting on Sunday night.....they will be lighting a candle and asked if everyone else would light a candle in Parker's memory also.

*****************************************************************************************************************************************
I went to visit Peggy Schiffner today........she had been in serious condition and her mom passed away when they were overcome with carbon dioxide poisoning. Peggy will be discharged tomorrow so that she will be able to be at the viewing. Please keep the Schiffner family in your prayers. Thanks. <3 href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzEa-BQsb_FPvhwEEDhhoN2H9E3gDlmeunZdwsqUZFxs07xWDviOSf5XVCmV6IbrBuecH2xvd2WYyMg-qoGe7ge2XhmEKeGX1KbgbzmSmoEQ_ajArD2AMMm1et8iPo6vsM2k6zrYxYCy0/s1600-r/family%252011-22-07MA17988648-0011.jpg">

UPDATE 12-02-2007

Cheryl Klopp <cherylklopp@yahoo.com>
Would you please ask people to pray for our friend's baby "KG". She was diagnosed with "cow's milk colitis" or a severe milk protein allergy. Mom is being very careful with her diet so she can continue breastfeeding, but the baby is still having problems. Seems that the tiniest bit of milk can make her sick. She'd need a very special, very expensive type of formula if Mom chooses to stop breastfeeding. Please pray for healing for KG & wisdom for her parents as they decide if they should switch to formula. Thank you for your prayers. Much love, Cheryl


(How beautiful is this family?! Cheryl (affectionately known as "Meghan's counselor from camp", her husband Addie, Annelise, and Logan - thought you'd all like to see these
beautiful children we've prayed for)

****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Karen Rumore <krumore@yahoo.com>
Aww, Carole's email was touching! I wanted to pass on a prayer request as well . . . Could you please pray for my friend's Mom who is in the hospital and for another friend's Mom who is facing a mental illness for the first time? I'd really appreciate it.

Thank you!
Love,
Karen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi everyone! I received the following request from Charlotte Rose's family. 11 yr old "Kat" was recently dx with a brain tumor and is undergoing chemo and radiation. Read her mom's e-mail below and please take a moment to sign Kat's site and let her know where you are from. Perhaps we can get all 50 states? Feel free to pass it on. Thanks!
<3 href="mailto:AET1955@aol.com" title="mailto:AET1955@aol.com">AET1955@aol.com <AET1955@aol.com>
For a homebound school project Katherine is keeping track on a map of all of her guest book entries. Here is a copy of the email from her mom:

I have no idea if someone else has already thought of this already but this is the plan for us. Katherine will read the Guestbook entries in her website journal regularly....she loves doing that. I am going to get a big plain map for her and she will post where everyone lives who writes to her. Sort of like the Flat Stanley project you know? Anyway, when I spoke to her teacher yesterday we talked about somehow working her website into a school assignment. This way she learns about all the people who love and support her and where they live and any other interesting facts about those places. I thought it would also help with the first question she asked me when I told her that she had brain cancer. That question was, "Will I be famous?" Kids are amazing aren't they??So, if you would like to help us with this project, please post on her website! Thanks for your help and we pray everynight for all the families whose lives have been touched by this 'stupid cancer' (quoting Katherine).Laurie m/o Katherinewww.caringbridge.org/visit/katherinebarnard

Can you please send this out to our list so we can get her as many as possible!

Thanks!

Sherry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pat Walters <pat.walters@gmail.com>

Hi Sylvia and Carolyn,

Could you please pray for a special intention today?
Spread the word, if possible, to other prayer warriors.

Thanks and I'll give you follow-up tomorrow.
Love,
Patsy

*************************************************************************************************************************

Sylvia!

Please pray for Lori and Tim and their family. Lori gave birth to twins yesterday and their little boy is having breathing and blood sugar problems. Her little girl is fine. They asked for our prayers so that all turns out well.

Sharon**************************************************************************************************************************
Norine/Tom Moore <tmoore@enter.net>

Dear Ones,

I was under the impression that my sister Sheila had landed safely with her cat, Dudley, in San Antonio yesterday but I just spoke with her. She had gotten very ill on the plane & passed out, hitting her head & jaw. She has stitches in her jaw now & a large hematoma on her forehead, as well as a nasty concussion. She was taken to the ER when they landed & she was there until after midnight while they did an EKG, CAT scan, etc. She has no idea what made her get so sick with diarrhea on the plane, but it probably led to dehydration & her blood pressure, which is abnormally low anyway, plummeted & she passed out. She's very weak & hurting a lot so she's at her son Chris' house where he can monitor her with the concussion. She sounds terrible & wants prayers for herself & for Dudley, too, who after the flight was dumped off at his house & is alone, poor baby. So, please pass Sheila's name along on prayer lines & say some good ones yourselves, prayer warriors. Many thanks & God bless.

Love,
Norine

************************************************************************************************************************
My grandmother was admitted to the hospital on Friday night after having yet another fall and being extremely confused.....this is all related to her recurrent bladder infection. We just received
a call saying that someone needs to pick her up.....that she's being discharged. My mom had just walked in the door after sitting with her for a few hours today and mom is shocked that grandma
is being discharged. Mom was told that since she was able to walk 140 feet without falling she's ready to go. Linda is picking her up. Please say a prayer that her guardian angels surround her
and that these bladder infections clear!!!

Also..........update on aunt Marie and uncle Herman. They are doing okay......aunt Marie's legs are pretty swollen from fluid build up and uncle Herman seemed to be coughing a little bit more
today, but other than that they are stable. Thanks for the continued prayers! <3>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is a really good news update!!!! Please continue to pray for Charlotte's complete healing. <3 href="mailto:AET1955@aol.com" title="mailto:AET1955@aol.com">AET1955@aol.com <AET1955@aol.com>
THE SCAN WAS CLEAR!!!!!! The brain was clear and the spine still shows exactly the same as the last 3 or 4 scans, they believe that is scar tissue. They will do a spinal tap on Thursday just to make sure there is no cancer cells left in the fluid.
They are discussing wether or not to put her on a preventive chemo,since most have some kind after radiation.
Will update on the spinal tap results when Sherry gets them next Monday.
Thank you God for the blessing!

********************************************************************************************************************

PLEASE PRAY FOR MEGHAN'S WORK SITUATION..........
************************************************************************************************************************

SylviaPlease pray for my aunt Peggy and Uncle Myles. They are both in their 80s, and uncle Myles will be hospitalized next week for rectal cancer. As far as I know, they have never been apart, and he will spend about 5-7 days in the hospital. They have no children, so we are trying to rally together and help them through this. Aunt Peggy is not in good health, and I could see the fear in her eyes @ the doctor today. Surgery is scheduled for 12/6. Also, please pray for a few special intentions. Thanks Maggie

*****************************************************************************************************************************Louise Wagner who Carole speaks of in her request below was indeed a ray of sunshine. I first met her when Michele took a sign language course and she was the instructor - what a neat, neat woman. So as Carole reminds us................I myself would like to thank each of you for being such a special part of my life. <3 href="mailto:Cmycross@aol.com" title="mailto:Cmycross@aol.com">Cmycross@aol.com <Cmycross@aol.com>
Good morning everyone,

How do people live without God's presence in their lives? The Lord has been so good to me. He brought me through so many traumas in my life, the loss of family, friends and so many illnesses, He has given me the strength to accept His will always and to help me to comfort others who have gone through as much in their lives. He has taught me to give of myself through volunteering to help others and gain the love and peace that this offers. Today I ask for your remembrance of one of the most remarkable women I was gifted to enter into my life. Louise Wagner. Louise went home to the Lord on 11/26. She was born of two deaf parents and dedicated much of her life to teaching sign language to anyone who wanted or needed her services. She was such a true friend to Girl Scouting as well as so many other organizations. I never saw Louise without a smile on her face. She brought so much sunshine, love and friendship into my life. I will miss my daily e-mails of joy from her. Think of your special friends as you read this and call them to let them know how much you treasure their gift of friendship. And the prayers I ask for are for her family and friends who will have a difficult time missing her. She is surely with the Lord and I'm sure reaching out to help already As I was sitting her with tears running down my cheeks, I feel her laughing saying where's the smile. Laugh and enjoy life. So I will laugh every time I think of her and thank her for being one of those angels God gifts us with. Have a day filled with blessings and take the time to see them as gifts from the Lord. Carole Yeager
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kninecircus@aol.com <Kninecircus@aol.com>
Dear Sylvia,
This prayer request is from my precious friend whose grandaughter was born with her intestines outside her body, and many, many other areas which weren't placed properly. Her dear little hips and legs, and gosh, too many things to mention.
She has had several surgeries already, but today is the big one.
Thanks so much for passing this on.
Love,
Leslie
Pam <psj18062@gmail.com>
By the time I send this, our little Cheyenne will be in the operating room with three surgeons who will make a multitude of changes in her tiny body. Pray for steady hands, sharp minds, and peace of mind for her parents who love her so much and must bear the interminable wait. We don't expect to hear results until evening. It will be a long day. May God keep her tucked in the palm of his hand.

Pam

Cheyenne – November 30, 2007

No bigger than her dolly
Our little one
Who still can't crawl
But climbs with ease
The mountains
That are part
Of her existence.

No bigger than her lamb
Our little one who still can't speak
But tells with ease
The story
That is part
Of her creation.

No bigger than her Daddy's arm
Our little one
Who nestles in
And trusts
That all is well
In her small world.

No bigger than her Mommy's heart
Our little one
Miraculous
Whose spirit
Shines so brightly
Revealing her Creator.

Far bigger than she'll ever know
Our little one
Who's innocence
Inspires us all
To say a prayer
This special day.

6:58pm ....I just received this latest update as I was preparing to send out the PR:
For those of you who don't follow the CarePage, here is an update. At about noon, the anesthesiologist became concerned about Cheyenne's oxygen levels and the decision was made to stop operating for today. The ortho surgeon managed to complete her pelvic reconstruction, but the rest of the surgeries will have to wait until tests are run to determine the cause of the problem. Please continue to keep Dan, Crystal, and Cheyenne in your prayers as they wait for healing and a decision about the next steps.

Thanks.

Pam
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
another prayer request....


We just received this e-mail from Victor's cousin who lives in TN......her dad is uncle Steve from MI (for those who have met him over 4th of July) - please keep this situation in your prayers.

Has Uncle Victor or my Dad told you about my Mom? She had a heart attack October 20th, and actually died for about a minute in the ER. They later discovered she also had pneumonia. She's been on a respirator since the attack, and was sent to a Specialty Hospital that is part of St. Joseph's in Ann Arbor, Mi. to be weaned off early in November. So far, she hasn't been off for more than 12 hours. When my Dad visited her last night she was off, but I don't know yet if she's still off or had to go back on. (My Dad e-mails updates to me every night, and I haven't heard from him yet.) My Dad loses his health insurance December 31st because the company he worked for is cancelling all retirees. Insurance paid $100,000 for her care before she even got transferred to the Specialty Hospital. Eee-gads! I don't know what he'll do without coverage! I'd appreciate it if you could remember them in your prayers.

Love, Kathryn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Our precious Heavenly Father, we thank You,

For the blessings You've bestowed upon this home and on those gathered here.

We thank You
For all those persons in our lives who have chosen us to be their friends
for truly this is a rich and sacred trust.

we thank You
For our homes, our jobs, and all that we have.
Give us only that which we need.

we thank You
For those serving in our armed services so that we may live in security
and peace. We pray for their families who share them with the world, and
we pray for their safe return.

we thank You for loved ones and friends who have died and gone before us.
Their love abides with us forever. We pray for their families and ask You to
be with them.

we thank You
for teaching us that we can do no great things,
only small things with great love

we thank You
for all who worked to bring this food to us and for those
who worked to prepare it.

for thy bounty which we are about to receive, may we be truly thankful. Amen




UPDATE 11/22/2007



May you all have a most beautiful Thanksgiving Day. For those whose precious loved ones have passed, please know that you especially are in our prayers this day. If you find yourself alone today, please know that you can join us at 2pm for Thanksgiving dinner.
~much love, sylvia (Victor, Michele & Meghan too) <3>


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hello everyone......Happy Thanksgiving! I ask you to please remember my very special friend Becky in your prayers. She's been going through a lot lately.....her dad recently passed away, she became ill and was unable to fly to TX for his funeral......one thing after the other.....now this. Becky has a very strong faith, but as we all know, being human, when it seems that it does not stop it's hard. Pray that something will work out for her. Thanks. <3>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MaureenHeil@aol.com <MaureenHeil@aol.com>
Hi Sylvia, Could you please add two intentions to the prayer chain?
Jim Arnold, brother-in-law of Deacon Dom Amadeo will have surgery for advanced colon cancer tomorrow morning at 7 AM and Jane Habel DRE at St. Jerome's in Tamaqua was admitted to the hospital last night with problem with her defibrillator. Please pray for good outcomes for both.
Thanks,
Maureen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


STILL LOOKING FOR ANYONE WHO MIGHT KNOW OF SOMEONE IN SPRINGFIELD, MO!! - one of my patients is from OK and is trying to make contact with one of his friends in MO, so pray that at least will work out.....and continue prayers for Ed (seriously injured in construction accident) and his wife Jenny.

Norine/Tom Moore <tmoore@enter.net>
Greetings, Dear Ones! Please all be praying for our precious Charlotte, who had the proton therapy in TX & will have her MRI tomorrow to see if it eliminated the cancer. Also, little one-year-old Meghan Norris, who has medullablastoma like Charlotte, is having brain surgery tomorrow, so both of these little girls & their families need special prayers in the next week. Thanks so much & God bless. Love, Norine

Marilyn Cassidy <cassidym@ptd.net>

John sees Dr. Kluck on 11/27 to see whether the CardioSeal (through the arteries to the heart - not through the chest) is an option for him to close the hole in his heart.

Michelle is taking Jezzy to her vet tomorrow to see about Jezzy's cough. Please pray for a good solution to that entire problem - that someone will take her. Also for my co-worker Terri's 14 year old toy poodle's surgery on a mammary tumor. And for Terri's special intention.

My sister Margie's bro-in-law, Jack in CA is responding to chemo and radiation, but still has many treatments remaining.

My bro-in-law, Dick Ball's cat scan was good.

My niece, Michele Ball, goes for her surgery on Fri.11/23. I have not heard the results of the MRI to see how extensive her breast cancer is, so I guess those results will determine what procedure happens on the 23rd - a lumpectomy or mastectomy.

We have a dear Jewish friend, Ann Rosenblum, in our family, and her daughter-in-law, Valerie, is having tingling in her hands and feet. She asked us to pray for her. Val is catholic and Ann's son, Jonathan, is jewish. They have twins who are studying for 1st communion, I think, and Ann helps them with their prayers, because my dear mother gave her all kinds of prayer cards, booklets, etc., and when the kids say "but you're jewish - how do you know these prayers?" Ann says "I had a very good teacher"... my mother and my sister, Helene, who was one of her best friends.

One of my special intentions has been answered, but now I have another.

Lorraine's friend Renee has a son hooked on drugs. Renee and her husband are going to do an intervention this thanksgiving weekend, so pray for their emotional health and safety. Her other friend, Linda's husband lost his job many months ago, has been depressed, his mother died two hours after their daughter was married, and they chose not to tell the daughter until she returned this week and she's mad that her grandmother died and was buried already. But the good news there is that Linda's husband's employer called and said they will hire him back in about a month.

My Renee's friend Rocio, in NC, lost her wedding band, which she made herself, along with her husband's. I'm praying to St. Anthony for that one.

I think that's all. Can someone print this out to take to Carol's, and give her my love. Love, Marilyn

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


A few of the children I follow through the ChemoAngels, etc..., their parents have organized a group "Band of Parents" ....they are raising awareness and money for children with cancer.
I thought I would pass along their latest fundraiser....

http://www.cookiesforkidscancer.org/Pages/Page.aspx

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE 11/14/2007

In a message dated 11/14/2007 8:58:46 P.M. Central Standard Time, smp75@msn.com writes:
tbrownid@aol.com

Hi Syl,
We need prayers. Gene's brother Ed was hurt this morning on a construction site in Springfield Missouri. We do not have a whole lot of information at the moment. This is what we have heard, Ed was on a scissor lift and there was control malfuntion, his upper body was crushed, both lungs collapsed and all the ribs on the left side are broken, he also had internal bleeding. He is out of surgery, the doctors had to remove part of his left lung. He is currently in ICU on a respirator. He is awake and we heard that he has asked for pen and paper. His wife is on her way and will be in Springfield sometime tonight.

Gene's mom is staying with the kids, they have 2 boys. I will send updates as soon as I hear more.
Thanks,
Teresa


Dear PGPG:

Rick.....thanks SO much!.....would you please be able to include Vincent's part of the letter so that people know what to donate (DVDs, etc)? Thanks!

Also, another one to add............sadly, with cancer. Parker Lutz is 5 yrs old and lives in Macungie. His website is:

http://www.carepages.com/ServeCarePage?cpn=ParkerLutz1&seed=806672&ClusterNodeID=jb03&tlcx1=default

or http://www.carepages.org/ parkerlutz is the "password"

Parker also has Neuroblastoma - in fact Vincent Patriarco has helped Parker along the journey. Well Parker's family received dreaded news this past week - the tumor has now grown in to his liver. Things are not good. This family really needs our prayers. at 610-360-6873.

Thank you for your donation,

Vince Patricarco
DVD AND ELECTRONIC GAME DRIVE


Do you have any gently used children's DVDs that are no longer watched, or electronic games that are no longer used? Or would you like to donate a new DVD for sick children to view in the hospital during diagnostics or long stays? Or a new or gently used electronic game for them to play?

My name is Vincent Patriarco, a sixth grade student at St. Thomas More School and I am doing this service project as a member of St. Thomas More Boy Scout Troop 439. This drive will benefit sick children in local and Philadelphia hospitals. Having faced cancer myself, I know how much these DVDs and electronic games are needed, appreciated, and enjoyed.

The DVDs should be targeted for ages 3-16 years old and should be in their original cases. Children's programs, young family-type movies, animal adventures, and nature adventures are most liked. General audience and PG are most desired, but PG-13 rating would be considered if appropriate.

"E" games, new or gently used, for PlayStation 1 and 2, Nintendo GameCube, and Xbox 360 game systems are also being collected. The hospitals have these systems available for their patients. New and gently used handheld electronic games like Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS (with chargers), as well as "E" rated games, would also be very much appreciated.

A collection box for these DVDs and games will be located in the vestibule of the church or in the school foyer through November 19th.

If you have any questions, you may contact me at vincequest@aol.com with "DVD/Electronic Game Drive" in the subject line, or at 610-360-6873.

Thank you for your donation,

Vince Patricarco
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FIRST Post: 7/2/2007
Below is an e-mail that Meghan received from her former Penn State roommate, Amanda. Katie was also their roommate the year before last and then went to live in Hershey as she was a nursing student and doing her rotation at Hershey Medical Center. Katie took a semester off and was living with her dad in Buffalo. She was at Meghan's graduation and it was so good to give her a hug in person and I spent quite a long time talking with her. Please keep Katie and her family, and her friends, - most especially the "YA YAs" (there were eight of them that lived together these past four years and that is what they were known as!).
amm451@psu.edu
It seems like this week can't possibly get any better. I don't know if any of you have talked to Katie Duncan but she got in touch with me today to inform me that Katie Smith got into a horrible car accident this morning. They found her at 5am. Her car flipped about 5-7 times. The investigators think that Katie hit a pipe or a drain and the road was wet. I am not sure of the details of the accident but we do know that Katie was wearing a seatbelt (thank god!). Anyways, Katie Duncan informed me of Katie's condition and this is all we know so far: The c-6 and c-7 disks in her vertebrate are dislocated and pinched her spinal cord. The spinal cord is bruised but it does not seem to be too badly damaged. Her lungs are bruised so the doctors have her on a ventilator and her spleen is bleeding which will have to be removed. Katie is unconscious right now but that is due to medications to help her heal and right now Katie is paralyzed from the shoulders down. The doctors plan on weaning her off the medication that is keeping her unconscious and as the swelling goes down then they will be able to determine how paralyzed she really is. So there is hope that Katie will be a lot better off than what it looks right now but we won't know till the swelling goes down and she heals. This accident occurred up in Buffalo and Katie Duncan didn't have any contact/mailing information as of yet. I will keep you all updated as I get information. I love you girls dearly! Please be safe and always wear your seatbelt. Pray for Katie she needs us more now than ever!
Love Always,
Amanda
************************************************************************************************************************

BCnATOWN@aol.com <BCnATOWN@aol.com>
Dad got out of nursing home rehab.Thurs after being away for more than 40 days. Please pray he gets stronger. My sister Pat is now taking care of him. Please pray for her to stay in good health.

Please pray for my Dad's cousin Father Ted Flanigan,MM who died yesterday. Remember he was ordained 50 years last June. His death hit Mom and Dad hard when they found out today.Thanks,Betty***************************************************************************************************************************
UPDATE ON MR SPAGNOLETTE

Karen S. Poshefko <poshefko@ptd.net>
Hi all,

My dad was about the same yesterday. The PT said he did well in his morning rehab session, but less so in the afternoon. When I got to GS aroud 4, he was in a lot of pain. This is to be expected, as the muscles in his neck were cut during surgery to access his vertebrae. The policy at GS is that he has to ask for pain meds, which he doesn't like to take. So, we had a discussion with his nurse and with him - they will offer him the meds and we encouraged him to take them regularly. The vertigo is still a problem and he's on meds for that too.

We're still not sure about a discharge date, and we're getting mixed signals on this. I spoke to his case manager yesterday and told her that having dad come home in a wheelchair is not an option. I told her there is no way my mom is going to be able to push him around. She said he should be "relatively independent" when he comes home, so a wheelchair shouldn't be needed. My dad is still very weak and is on a lot of meds. He's walking in therapy, but when they take him to the bathroom - which is about 10 ft. from his bed - they use a wheelchair. He needs help transferring from the bed to the chair. So, on one hand, they say he won't go home till he's ready, but on the other, there's still talk about him coming home next week. This is causing us, particularly my mom, a lot of stress. I've talked to the case manager about help at home. She said that's an option but we should wait till his discharge date gets closer.

Sorry I haven't been replying to all your notes individually, so here are responses to some of your questions. Not sure what's happening with the person who hit my dad. The policeman who responded on the scene told me in the ER that the woman who hit my dad was not injured. FYI - according PA law, my dad's insurance company will go after her company for the value of my dad's car, but not for reimbursement of medical expenses. So, you may want to check your auto insurance policy and make sure you have enough coverage. As for visiting, we're holding off till my dad gets home and is feeling better. His time at GS is devoted to therapy and rest. He hasn't been sleeping at night, so he naps when he can.

THANK YOU for all the cards, prayers, offers of transportation, etc. I'll be in touch.

Love,
Karen
*************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
UNCLE HERMAN UPDATE: He is still in the hospital - still having a little difficulty breathing and cousin Tara thought his speech was a little slurred - a CT scan of the brain and also of his leg which has been giving him some trouble will be done tomorrow. Tara is going to check in to see about having him transferred to the Lehigh Valley - it would certainly be more convenient for aunt Marie. Please pray for my cousins Tara and Kurt who have been a Godsend this past weekend - Michele's best friend Lauren was married yesterday and Michele was the maid of honor - Kurt reassured us we should stay put and enjoy the wedding and he would take care of things - today Tara flew in from NC to help.
******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

I am asking if you could include my nephew on the prayer warrior list. Michael was told he had prostate cancer. He goes to see the doctor soon and the doctor wants to operate. Please pray all goes well for him.

Love,
Marian

Saturday, December 22, 2007

Paul B...needs a Humility Prayer


Litany of Humility
Written by Cardinal Merry del Val.

He was accustomed to recite this prayer daily after the celebration of Holy Mass.

O Jesus meek and humble of heart, Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed,
From the desire of being loved,
From the desire of being extolled,
From the desire of being honored,
From the desire of being praised,
From the desire of being preferred to others,
From the desire of being consulted,
From the desire of being approved,
Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being humiliated,
From the fear of being despised,
From the fear of suffering rebukes,
From the fear of being calumniated,
From the fear of being forgotten,
From the fear of being ridiculed,
From the fear of being wronged,
From the fear of being suspected,
Deliver me, Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I,
That others may be esteemed more than I,
That in the opinion of the world, others may increase, and I may decrease,
That others may be chosen and I set aside,
That others may be praised and I unnoticed,
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
That others may become holier than I, provided that I become as holy as I should,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. Amen.

from the Gospel of Matthew - Father Throckmorton




Reverend Hamilton Throckmorton, right, surprised his congregation in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, when he followed up a sermon by handing out $40,000 in cash.

Pastor's Challenge Shocks Congregation
By HELEN O'NEILL,
AP
Posted: 2007-12-22 07:00:06

CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio (Dec. 20) - The Rev. Hamilton Coe Throckmorton shivered with anticipation as he gazed at the loot - wads of $50 bills piled high beside boxes of crayons in a Sunday school classroom.

It was a balmy Friday evening in September. From several floors below faint melodies drifted up - the choir practicing for Sunday service.

Throckmorton was oblivious. For hours, perched awkwardly on child-sized wooden stools surrounded by biblical murals and children's drawings, the pastor and a handful of coconspirators concentrated on the count.

Forty-thousand dollars. Throckmorton smiled in satisfaction as he stashed the money in a safe.

That Sunday, the 52-year-old minister donned his creamy white robes, swept to the pulpit and delivered one of the most extraordinary sermons of his life.

First he read from the Gospel of Matthew.

"And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his ability."

Then he explained the parable of the talents, which tells of the rich master who entrusts three servants with a sum of money - "talents" - and instructs them to go forth and do good. The master lavishes praise on the two servants who double their money. But he casts into the wilderness the one so afraid to take a risk that he buries his share.

Throckmorton spends up to 20 hours working on his weekly homily, and his clear diction, contemplative message and ringing voice command the church. Gazing down from the pulpit that Sunday, Throckmorton dropped his bombshell.

Like the master, he would entrust each adult with a sum of money - in this case, $50. Church members had seven weeks to find ways to double their money, the proceeds to go toward church missions.

"Live the parable of the talents!" Throckmorton exhorted, as assistants handed out hundreds of red envelops stuffed with crisp $50 bills and stunned church members did quick mental calculations, wondering where all the money had come from. There are about 1,700 in the congregation, though not everyone attends each week.

The cash, Throckmorton explained, was loaned by several anonymous donors.

In her regular pew at the back of the church, where she has listened to sermons for 40 years, 73-year-old Barbara Gates gasped. What kind of kooky nonsense is this, she thought.

"Sheer madness," sniffed retired accountant Wayne Albers, 85, to his wife, Marnie, who hushed him as he whispered loudly. "Why can't the church just collect money the old-fashioned way?"

In a center pew, Ann Nagy's eyes moistened as she considered her ailing, beloved father, his suffering, and the song she had written to comfort him near death. She nudged her husband Scott. "Give me your $50," she whispered. Nagy knew exactly what she would do.

Throckmorton wrapped up his two morning services by saying that children would get $10. And he assured the congregation that anyone who didn't feel comfortable could simply return the money. No consignment to outer darkness for those who didn't participate.

Throckmorton is warm and engaging and approachable, as comfortable talking about the Cleveland Indians baseball team as he is discussing scripture. At the Federated Church, he is known simply as Hamilton.

But as church members spilled into the late summer sunshine that morning to ponder their skills and their souls, there were many who thought: Hamilton is really pushing us this time.

"There was definitely this tension, this pressure to live up to something," said Hal Maskiell, a 62-year-old retired Navy pilot who spent days trying to figure out how to meet the challenge.

Maskiell's passion is flying a four-seater Cessna 172 Skyhawk over the Cuyahoga County hills. He decided to use his $50 to rent air time from Portage County airport and charge $30 for half-hour rides. Church members eagerly signed up. Maskiell was thrilled to get hours of flying time, and he raised $700.

His girlfriend, Kathy Marous, 55, was far less confident. What talents do I have, she thought dejectedly. She was tempted to give the money back.

And then Marous found an old family recipe for tomato soup, one she hadn't made in 19 years. She remembered how much she had enjoyed the chopping and the cooking and the canning and the smells. With Hal's encouragement Marous dug out her pots. She bought three pecks of tomatoes. Suddenly she was chopping and cooking and canning again. At $5 a jar, she made $180.

"I just never imagined people would pay money for the things I made," Marous exclaimed.

Others felt the same way. Barbara Gates raised $450 crafting pendants from beads and sea glass - pieces she had casually made for her grandchildren over the years. Kathie Biggin created fanciful little red-nosed Rudolph pins and sold them for $2.50. Twelve-year-old Amanda Horner pooled her money with friends, stocked up at JoAnn's fabric store, and made dozens of colorful fleece baby blankets, which were purchased by church members and then donated to a local hospital.

And 87-year-old Bob Burrows rediscovered old carpentry skills and began selling wooden bird-feeders.

But it wasn't the money; everyone said so. It was something else, something far less tangible but yet so very real. For seven weeks an almost magical sense of excitement and energy and camaraderie infused the elegant red-brick church on Bell Street, spilling over into homes and hearts as the parable of the talents came alive.

In her sun-filled studio on Strawberry Lane, Shirley Culbertson felt it - a joyful sense of purpose that she had rarely experienced since her husband passed two years ago. Culbertson, 81, is a gifted painter and watercolors fill her house. But she discovered another talent during this time - knitting whimsical eight-inch stuffed dolls with button noses and floppy hats. She raised $90.

Zooming down country roads clinging to the back of a leather-clad biker, Florence Cross felt it too. For the challenge, Barry Biggin had parked his 2006 Harley Davidson Road King outside the church, offering 12-mile rides for $30. Cross was the first to sign up. Never mind that she is in her mid-80s, had never been on a bike, or that her husband of 60 years had to hoist her up.

"Oh, it was such a thrill!" said Cross, her face glowing at the memory. Her friends now call her "Harley Girl."

Martine Scheuermann lived the parable in her Elm Street kitchen, transforming it into an "applesauce factory" for several weeks. The 49-year-old human resources director would rise at 6 a.m. on Sundays in order to have warm batches ready for sampling at church services.

In his origami-filled bedroom on Bradley Street, Paul Cantlay lived the parable too. Surrounded by sheets of colored construction paper, the 9-year-old crafted paper dragons and stars and sailboats. He set up an origami stand at the end of his street, charged 50 cents to $5 depending on the piece, and raised $68.

Talents began multiplying at such a rate that the church held a bazaar after services on two consecutive Sundays for people to display - and sell - their wares.

The pretty little village on the Chagrin River falls had never seen anything quite like it. Everyone seemed to be talking about the talent challenge: over the clatter of coffee cups at Dink's restaurant, at the Fireside bookshop on the green, sipping drinks at the Gamekeeper's Taverne. Even members of other churches weighed in: Have you heard what's happening at Federated?

"Anyone can open their wallet and give cash," Kris Tesar said. "This was just an extraordinary process of exploration and discovery and of challenging ourselves. It became bigger than any one of us or than any individual talent."

Tesar, a 58-year-old retired nurse, discovered her talent in buckets of flip-flops for sale at Old Navy. She stocked up on yarn and beads and made dozens of funky, fluffy decorative footwear that were a huge hit with teens. Tesar raised $550 for the church, is still taking orders and is thinking of starting a business. Now even her children call her the "flip-flop lady."

People also got to know the "hen lady" - Gabrielle Quintin, who took to raising chickens on a whim 23 years ago when she moved into a 180-year-old house with a barn. Her "ladies," as Quintin calls her backyard flock, provide a welcome distraction from her nursing job in a cancer center. Quintin decided to put her brood to work for the church. For $10 church members could "hire-a-hen" and get three dozen fresh eggs complete with a photograph of the "lady" who laid them.

"It wasn't exactly spiritual, but I had a lot of fun," said Quintin, whose husband, Mike, made glass birdfeeders. "And it was just this great way of bringing everyone together and connecting with the church."

Kathy Wellman quilted. Mary Hobbs knit shawls and penciled portraits. Cathy Hatfield auctioned a ride in her hot-air balloon. Norma and Trent Bobbitt pooled their money with another church member to hire a harpist from the Cleveland orchestra and host an elegant evening dinner party. Folks paid $50 each to attend and the Bobbitts made over $1,200.

And physician Peter Yang took over shifts from other doctors in his partnership (he used his $50 for gas to get to the hospital) and raised $3,000.

The deadline to return the money was Sunday, Oct. 28. Nervously, some church council members suggested posting plain clothes security guards at services that day. But Throckmorton would have none of it. He insisted that the spirit of the challenge, which had already inspired so much goodwill, would carry them safely through. And it did.

Organ music filled the church as people silently filed down the aisle, dropped their proceeds into baskets, and offered testimonials about what living the parable had meant to them. Throckmorton thanked everyone for their generosity. Then he started counting.

A week later he delivered the joyful news: They had more than doubled the amount distributed.

The initial take was $38,195 over the loan, but the amount is still growing. Some people didn't make the deadline, or extended it in order to finish their projects.

The final sum will be divided equally between three charities: One-third will go to a school library in South Africa where the church is involved in an AIDS mission; one-third will go to micro-loan organizations that provide seed money for small businesses in developing countries; one-third will help the Interfaith Hospitality Network in Cleveland, specifically programs for homeless women.

Throckmorton is asked all the time if the talent challenge will become an annual event, but he is doubtful. It was a special time and a special idea, he says, and he is not sure it could be re-created or relived.

Yet in a very real sense, it lives on. Church members who never knew each other have become friends. And orders for applesauce, flip-flops and Rudolph pins are still rolling in for Christmas.

There are other, more poignant reminders. Like Ann Nagy's haunting tribute to her father, who died of brain cancer on Oct. 11.

Nagy, 44, has always been a singer with a clear lovely voice. It wasn't until her father grew ill and moved into a hospice that she started writing songs. She found solace in the music and a way of communicating that was sometimes easier than spoken words.

At hospice, patients are taught five simple truths to tell their loved ones before they die: I'll miss you. I love you. I forgive you. I'm sorry. Goodbye.

Borrowing from that theme, Nagy wrote a farewell song for her Dad. She pooled her $50 talent money with her husband's share and cut a CD to sell to church members. Ironically it was finished just an hour before her father passed, on Oct. 11. Nagy stood by his bed and sang it for him anyway.

On Nov. 11 - her father's 72nd birthday - Throckmorton preached a sermon about dying. He invited Nagy to the altar. There, accompanied by a cellist and a pianist she sang "Before You Go."

Her voice soared. The congregation wept. The parable of the talents had never seemed so alive.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
2007-12-20 19:25:53