Yay for Euchre, pizza, friends and fun!

Some of the Toucans: Kraig, Stef, Greg & Jen

Our first "Team Toucan" fundraiser, a euchre tournament, was a huge success, and from what we heard, a lot of fun. We raised more than $1,400 for the 3-Day for the Cure, and importantly, had a great evening hanging out with friends and family who are so supportive of what we're trying to do.

The evening wouldn't have been possible without the wonderful space we had -- the clubhouse was donated by a local apartment complex. As I said that night, you have to follow the bouncing ball: Keith's mom suggested the space after hosting a baby shower there with Keith's cousin, Crystal, who is married to Don. Don's deceased brother's widow's husband's daughter runs the clubhouse. Doesn't matter how you get there, as long as you get there: Thank you, Don, Crystal, Kay & Debbie!

A quick but heartfelt thanks to Jet's Pizza and Buscemi's for donating the pizzas. (And to Brian & Nicole for arranging some of that for us!)

Finally, thank you so much to everyone who came to play! From our family to our camping friends, to school/neighborhood pals to long-time friends, they turned out in full force, even with friends and family of their own. We met several new people, and had a great time that night.

As Stefanie said, Thank you for opening your hearts, and your wallets, to something so dear to us. We do the walking, but we couldn't do it without you.

xoxo

And the panic sets in ...

Not for the first time, I'm sure, but the panic has set in.

We have our first 'official' team fundraiser this weekend, our Euchre Tournament, with 50 players registered. And so, I panic. Will everyone show up? Will they arrive on time? Will we have all our material? I know it'll all work out just fine ... we had a blast last year, and by all measures we should have a great time this year. The forecast looks fine (we had a snowstorm last year), the RSVP count is relatively firm (there's still room if you want to get in!), and the location is perfect (a donated clubhouse).

And Monday starts our 24-week training period. I cannot believe it's here already. I just don't feel ready yet. I'm super swamped at work. I haven't been very good about getting to the gym the past two weeks. (OK, three, if I have to be honest.) And the weather's still pretty iffy most days. On the other hand, the structured regimen of the training schedule will "force" me to get to the gym instead of making up a lame excuse. And the first month's pretty tame, with a lot of 3-mile walks, which are really easy to do on the treadmill. And the weather's truly been amazing this winter, so maybe I can get outside for a brief jaunt.

Oh yeah, and we're walking with a team this year.. there are six of us, four of whom have never walked. Do they have the info they need? Are they doing ok with their training? What am I missing? I have to keep in mind that although they haven't walked before, Stef's husband has been through the walk twice with her, so he's totally aware of what he's getting in to. And our other three teammates are incredibly intelligent, self-sufficient and motivated people... they'll do just great. They're already kicking butt in fundraising!

So I guess I've talked myself out of complete panic. Now it's just partial panic. . .

Here's hoping for some calm ...

This past week has just been crazy ... from an announcement that irritated/delighted, to a reversal that irritated/delighted, to a resignation that irritated/delighted. Go figure. Amid the chaos, two things became very clear to me this past week:

1) The personal support our team has for what we're doing is incredible and irreplaceable.
While watching all of the drama unfold through various channels (I was off last week, which gave me a lot of free time!), I saw some unbelievable behavior. People were saying/posting such incredibly hurtful things, toward the Komen organization and to Nancy Brinker herself. I get that this became a very personal issue for people, and I get that people have very strong feelings about issues such as abortion. But to express your opinion with such rudeness and hatred is just unacceptable in a civilized society.

With that said: The personal support our team has for what we're doing was incredible. Even though I have friends and family who may not agree with me personally, religiously or politically, the discourse was always civilized and respectful. I understand that my friends may not want to donate to Komen because of their ties to Planned Parenthood. Or because of concerns about the conservative direction the Board seems to be moving. I just hope that we can all agree on one thing: Breast cancer is a horrible disease and if I can do anything to help make a difference in the effort to put an end to it, I will.

2) The mission of the Komen Foundation, and our team, remains the same: Put an end to breast cancer. 
I was really impressed with the statement Komen made today on Facebook: 

"We have made mistakes in how we have handled recent decisions and take full accountability for what has resulted, but we cannot take our eye off the ball when it comes to our mission. To do this effectively, we must learn from what we've done right, what we've done wrong and achieve our goal for the millions of women who rely on us. The stakes are simply too high and providing hope for a cure must drive our efforts."

That statement summed up the entire issue pretty well for me. We screwed up. We're going to refocus. We'll try to do better. 

That's all we can ask for, isn't it? To do a little better each time we make a mistake? And have some faith that the mission is worth fighting for. 

Because that's what we owe to the the women I've encountered during my 3-Day experience. People like Allie, a single mom surviving breast cancer; or Bridget, who was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer when she was only 21 and had no family history; or young Zoie, who inspired so many 3-Day walkers. And more closely to home, to our teammates: Julie and Greg, whose lost their mothers because of breast cancer; and Jenn, whose mother-in-law died of breast cancer.

That's why we walk. Because we can envision a world where some day, breast cancer will be a distant memory. Because we found a cure. Or a preventive measure. Or a test. Or a treatment. Or something. Anything. We walk, because we can. It's the least I can do.

Look what happens while I vacay ...

I took a quick four-day trip with the family and some friends (Kalahari Resort - highly recommended!). While gone, two mind-boggling things happened... let's start with the good: I received more than $350 in donations while we were gone, thank you very much! I'm officially at 37 percent of my goal, which is deliriously exciting.

Then we came home. And I checked Facebook. Holy controversy Batman.

For those who haven't heard (yeah right), the Komen Foundation pulled its grants from Planned Parenthood. The official reasons (as best I can tell) is that Planned Parenthood is currently under investigation by Congress, and therefore does not meet the new criteria for being a grant recipient, and/or the SGK is moving grants to direct service providers instead of "pass through" services (no mammograms are actually done at any PP facilities).

Do I agree with this decision? No. I don't. I won't go into the myriad of reasons (because I don't think it's relevant... it's just my personal opinion), but there is one thing I want to say loud and clear:

I don't agree with the decision, but I still support the Komen Foundation. I will continue to support all of the good work that they do, from funding research grants to providing outreach, education and support to those who need it. At the same time, I will do whatever I can do to make sure that the Foundation knows I don't agree with this decision. I think it was driven by politics, which is a shame.

Because I think this decision will hurt women. Many of them. However, pulling my support entirely from Komen won't do any good either.

It makes me sad that we live in a society that is so polarized on one issue. Meanwhile, thousands of women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and too many of them die. Early detection saves lives, regardless of where that service is provided.

Our pink posse is growing

I haven't had a chance to catch one of the 2012 3-Day for the Cure commercials yet, but from what I hear, they're great. (I have watched the "experience video" on the Komen site, and loved it.) And from what I can tell, they're working......

The past two weeks, our team has grown ... our little pink posse has become a team of six! From our tiny team of two (Stef and I), we added Stef's husband (Kraig), Kraig & Stef's friend (Greg, whose mother died of breast cancer), our friend Jenn, and today, our friend Julie (whose mother also died of breast cancer).

Each of us is walking for a different reason, yet we're united in our efforts to raise awareness and funding for breast cancer research, education, prevention and treatment. And by August 17, we will have raised at least $13,800 to contribute to those efforts

In the meantime, we're still trying to figure out an appropriate initiation ritual....

It's time to shuffle up and deal ...

OK, it's not quite the right phrase, but it's time for our annual Euchre Tournament, on Saturday, March 3! Last year's event was a hugely successful fundraiser for the 3-Day for the Cure, and from what we heard, it was a great time...

If you participated last year, it's time to register again, and this time, bring a friend! If you didn't participate last year, what are you waiting for?

Let's start with allaying your concerns...

1) You don't need to be a "good" euchre player to participate.
Seriously, this is a low-stakes, fun tournament. You just need to know the basics. The way the tournament is structured, you'll rotate tables (and partners) every eight hands (twice around the table). There's no guarantee you'll be partnered with someone who has a clue, so it won't matter much if you don't have a clue!  And remember, it's all for charity, so it really doesn't matter. 

2) You don't have to have a partner to play.
The schedule is completely random, and you'll play with different people throughout the night. (OK, no comments on that one.) 

3) It won't cost you a fortune.
The entry fee is only $20 per person. That's it. It's BYOB, but we'll have pop/water. We'll hold a 50/50 raffle, but you're under no obligation to participate. With the donated space, and partially donated pizza, nearly 100% of the entry fee goes directly to our walk fund.

This year, we're really fortunate to have a great space to host the Euchre Tournament -- thanks to Keith's cousin's husband's sister-in-law's stepdaughter (follow that bouncing ball!), we are able to host the tournament at the clubhouse for an apartment complex .. it's absolutely beautiful and incredibly spacious ...

So think about it ... actually, do more than think about it. Check out the details for the event, and send me (or Stef) an e-mail today to let us know that you're registering for the Euchre Tournament. Last year's event was a tremendous success, and it's a crucial piece of our fundraising efforts. (In fact, this year, it may be our one "big" event that we're hosting.) Participating in the Euchre Tournament is a great way to have a fun night out and help us out at the same time.

Hope to see you there!

Fundraising with Tastefully Simple: A win-win proposal

Raising $2,300 for the Susan G Komen 3-Day for the Cure isn't an easy task. (Neither is walking 400+ miles to train for it, but that comes later!) And my fundraising efforts for the year kick off today with a Tastefully Simple "virtual" party.

So here's the deal ... Thanks to the generosity of a friend/consultant, Stephanie Jurva, with my Tastefully Simple catalog party, you get some fabulous food, and the 3-Day for the Cure gets 20% of what you spend. Easy peasy.

If you're new to Tastefully Simple, or not sure what to order, I recommend:

• Beer Bread mix -- Absolutely awesome. It's easy, it's delicious. The kids love it (the alcohol cooks off), and the crust is just to die for. This is a must have in my kitchen.
• Wahoo! Chili seasoning -- Just the right amount of zest ... seriously gives a little kick to your dish.
• Any of the dips, but especially the "Trio"  -- "Onion Onion," "Garlic Garlic" and "Bacon Bacon." It does not get better than this. You get the dry mix from Tastefully Simple, and mix it with mayo and sour cream. It's easy to make it "light," and they're awesome with crackers and veggies.

I'm going to surf the site for a few days and see what new things there are to try -- it's great stuff, reasonably priced, and with 20% going to the 3-Day, it's a win-win for me!

Ordering is easy: Just visit www.tastefullysimple.com. Shop. When you get to the checkout/shopping cart, select "Find Host/Event" on the bottom right of your screen. Type in my name (Jennifer Carbary). Select my party. Voila. 20% of what you just bought is donated directly to the 3-Day, thank you very much!  Your items are shipped right away, so you don't even have to wait for everyone else to order.

If you have any questions, just ask. If you want to invite me over for dinner and try some of your new favorite things, I'm there!!