Pool Party Fun!

Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the Pool Party!  

Here are a few pictures of all the fun that was being had!  

We had around 360 people who came to swim 

with us and support Charlotte!  

We want to thank each one of you!

Pool Party is Tonight!

DONT FORGET TO BUY YOUR 

TICKETS NOW! 

We are limited to 200 people. Thus the presales. Order here on the blog, then print off your paypal receipt and bring it to the pool tonight to exchange for your silicone wristband. 

Or come see us at Thomas Edison Charter School today from 2:15-3:00 we'll be by the front office selling passes and handing out silicone wrist bands. 

 Hope to see you there and we all really appreciate your help in supporting our efforts to help with Charlotte's cancer related medical bills.

8/16/11

So I suppose I should do a post here every now and then. I think I like to spend more time thinking about what to write as opposed to actually writing anything. It also seems as if some of my fingers are faster than others so I am transposing a lot of letters! I have a post in my head about when I found out I had cancer but I haven't been able to sit down and start writing it. And if I keep putting it off, I may never write at all. So I thought I would talk about today.

Today I had chemo for the 3rd time. It's always a little humbling. The first time I went, I didn't really talk to anyone. I think I was somewhat overwhelmed. It was the first day with both the radiation and chemo. But my mom went with me (have I mentioned how awesome my mom is?) and she talked to one of the ladies when the Benedryl knocked me out. This lady has cancer in her bowels. She has one daughter in high school and several older children. She is tall and athletic looking. She always brings these healthy snacks. She had a sandwich today with sprouts on it and offered to share without a moment's hesitation. Her daughter came with her today and her son came to visit also. She is on a maintenance program after finishing her regular chemo treatment.

Last week, I sat next to a lady who had breast cancer and it is now in her lymph nodes, lungs and bones. She is this beautiful older lady who looks like she could be your favorite grandma. This is her second time through chemo treatments.

Another lady has pancreatic cancer and the chemo isn't helping very much. She is small and petite with a fiesty attitude. She crochets these beautiful afghan as she sits through her treatment. Her daughter usually sits with her for most of the time. She ordered a wheelchair because she is losing some of the function in her legs.

Today I sat next to a man who has brain cancer. He is wiry and tough looking. He always wears these motor cycle T-shirts and looks like he could beat anything. He has a dry, self-deprecating sense of humor. He found out about year ago when he got an MRI for really bad headaches. They did surgery and removed the tumor but then discovered there was one more in the center of his brain and two other small ones. They told him they could operate on those but it would most likely leave him in a condition of needing to be put in a nursing home. So he did 45 radiation treatments and now does chemo every two weeks. Every time he gets back to feeling normal, he goes in for another round of chemo. His doctor told him that he probably wouldn't survive past last June. He's lost most of his appetite. He's says he's lost 40 pounds but the tumors haven't grown and he's still kicking!

These people are dealing with way more than I am. It's so hard to listen to their stories. I only have 28 radiation treatments and 6 doses of chemo. I look around and see these beautiful people and wonder why they have to deal with all of this. I just wish I could take it all away or trade places with them.

Charlotte

My daughter, Charlotte

Verla Hall, Charlotte's mother is the author of this post.  Verla lives in Wendell, Idaho with her husband John.  They are the parents of nine children who have all grown and begun families of their own.

Charlotte Elaine is our fifth child and first daughter. We decided to name her Charlotte, after her Welsh great grandmother, Charlotte Morris; and Elaine, after her English great grandmother, Elaine Hobbs. The baby books say that the name, Charlotte, means “strong woman.”  The name, Elaine, means “bright light”. We didn’t know at the time how well the names would fit our beautiful daughter.

As Charlotte grew, she began to show her strength of character and her willingness to work hard at any job that needed to be done. She worked with her brothers to milk our small herd of dairy cows morning and evening. One summer she painted the entire outside of our two-story house by herself. Several years ago, she decided to tile the kitchen and bathroom of her home in Logan. She had never laid tile before, but she studied the job out, asked questions, and worked hard to lay each piece of tile perfectly. Then she laid wood flooring in her living room. The floors are a delightful addition to her home.

Charlotte lights up the lives of those around her. A number of years ago, just before Charlotte left to move to Logan, she decided to put a black rinse on her hair. It was supposed to wash out after a couple of shampoos. It never did. As her hair grew, her blond roots formed a golden “halo” above the dark hair. Her husband, Les, says he fell in love with Charlotte because he had never before met anyone who had an actual physical halo.

Charlotte’s spiritual halo shows as she teaches those around her. Each day when she returned home from Kindergarten, she would sit down with her younger brother and teach him everything that she had learned that day. She taught him so well that he learned to read before he entered Kindergarten. She loves to read long stories to her two small boys. For Charlotte, the biggest disappointment in her battle with cancer is that she will not be able to be with her Special Education students at Thomas Edison Charter School this fall.

When Charlotte was a toddler, her grandmother worked at the JC Penney store in Rexburg, Idaho. Her grandmother often walked by the rack of cute little girl clothes and wished that she could afford to buy them for her granddaughter. Then the Teton Dam broke, and water rolled through the streets and buildings of Rexburg. The weight of the water collapsed the floor of the store and all the merchandise washed into the basement.

When the clean up began, the manager of the store allowed the employees to salvage what they desired of the ruined merchandise. Grandma knew exactly where to find the little girls’ clothing. She waded through the rubble and dug through the mud until she found what she wanted. She took the clothing home, washed it, and packaged it up to send to Charlotte. Her grandmother found something beautiful in the midst of a disaster, and used it to bless the life of her granddaughter.

Charlotte is so grateful for the kindness and generosity of her friends and neighbors. With tears in her eyes, she talks about her dream of getting well so that she can help others as she has been helped. Like her grandmother, as Charlotte wades through the calamity of cancer, she is looking for something beautiful that she can use to bless the lives of others.

Charlotte is truly a strong woman and a bright light to all.

By Verla Hall