Reclaiming Wellness

Jana went 13.1 on the 13th!!

Dear Family, Friends and Colleagues!

October 13, 2007 dawned clear, cool and beautiful!  It was the perfect day for the more than 14,000 runners/walkers who were participating in the Baltimore Running Festival and the energy in the air was palpable.

For the 115 participants from the Maryland Leukemia & Lymphoma Society team, it was the culmination of a commitment to raise funds for research and patient support by challenging ourselves to participate in this endurance event.  Together we walked, ran, talked and laughed countless miles together, and along the way we raised more than $250,000!  At the Friday night pasta party, we met some of the patients and families whose lives have been touched by the LLS TNT program, and we were reminded that what we were doing really was making a difference.  I am so proud to have been a part of that team.

My goals for the day of the walk were to finish in less than 4 hours (which I did – 3:45) and to have fun (which I also did!).  The people of Baltimore were wonderful; they lined the streets in their neighborhoods, cheered us on, gave us high-fives, applauded us, offered food/drink, and waved and smiled.  There were even two Baltimore “Hons” who were giving away hugs!  The police were also great; they kept us safe by managing the traffic (I’m glad that I was walking), and also cheered us on.  It was a wonderful day and I look forward to doing it again!

Your contribution to my effort was so important and I thank you again.  As you can see from the total that was raised by only 115 people, all of the donations – large and small – combined to form a very impressive total!  I also want to thank my coaches, teammates, my daughter Carrie (she’s the one who got me to sign up!), the LLS staff, and everyone who helped along the way.  (It's not too late to donate.  Just go to www.active.com/donate/tntmd/tntmdJMeacha before December 1!)

Next year is the 20^th anniversary of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training program and I expect that I will be involved again; I also want to invite you to join me!  It will mean more than you can imagine…

Peace and blessings to all,

Jana

TNT Update: 32 days to go!

September is Awareness month for Leukemia, Lymphoma, and Myeloma

    

     Well, the date is drawing near and both fundraising and training are getting a lot of attention!  I walked 8 miles on Saturday in only 2 1/2 hours, which is a whole lot faster than I was walking when I first started.  I never cease to be amazed at how our bodies will respond to attention and exercise.

     I have raised $1132 of the required $1500 and have only 15 days left to raise the remaining $368.  In addition to accepting direct donations, I also have raffle tickets for an awesome 7-day Caribbean Cruise on Norwegian Cruise lines...imagine sitting on your own balcony, watching the sea go by...tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20.

     Even when we are having fun working with the TNT team, we are also often reminded of why we are doing this volunteer work.  One participant, with her voice breaking and tears in her eyes, recently shared the story of her brother who died this past April from sarcoma.  Another told of us a life-long friend who thought he had beat back leukemia, only to have it come back with a vengeance; he has also died.  And we found out that one of the honored teammates, a 6 year old girl named Cameron, lost her battle against leukemia.

     While these people, and too many others have died, many thousands more are alive because of the research that has been done, research that is supported by the LLS and TNT.  This is important work and I do ask your support.

• To contribute online, go to http://www.active.com/donate/tntmd/tntmdJMeacha
• To contribute by check, make it to LLS and mail to Terra Enterprises, Inc., P.O. Box, 397, Laurel, MD  20725-0397.
• To purchase raffle tickets, send a check made out to LLS, tell me how many tickets you want and send it to the address above.  I will get your tickets to you right away!

     Let's not forget that the main goal is to prevent getting these awful diseases by supporting our immune systems through proper supplementation, lifestyle and thoughtful living.  We will continue to address these concepts and will start the series on water next week.

     I wish you peace, joy and many blessings,  Jana

It's Raining!

We are finally getting some good rain in Maryland.  A blessed, slow rain that will actually be able to penetrate the incredibly dry earth.  It's the kind of rain that lasts for several days and is a weather pattern that we have not seen all summer.  The farmers have suffered terribly - there have been huge crop losses - and trees and plants everywhere have looked dry and parched.

It started raining quite hard when I was out on my training walk this morning. I was dressed appropriately and it felt really good to be outside in the rain.  I don't know about you, but as a child, playing outside in the rain with my brothers and sisters was something that we did all the time!  And, since we don't know what the weather will be on October 13 (the day of the Baltimore Marathon and my fund-raiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (www.active.com/donate/tntmd/tntmdJMeacha), we continue to train regardless of the weather.

Weather and climate change are two topics that we hear about all the time, and there is no doubt that we are in a state of change.  Both affect our lives, our health and our planet profoundly.  I believe that the more that we understand the consequences of our actions on the planet, the more willing we will be to do what we can to mitigate the negative consequences.  We have the resources and a lot of knowledge; now all we need is the will to act.

So, I am going to start a series on water!  Water is a precious resource that most of us take for granted; yet there are thousands who die or suffer illness every day from lack of a safe supply of water.

We will look at water as a resource - the effect of toxins - municipal water filtration methods - wells - and what you can do to both protect yourself and our planet.  It may sound like a dry topic (no pun intended...) but is really quite interesting!

Keep in touch - I wish you peace and blessings!

Jana

On The Road Again...

Have you ever wanted to participate in an athletic event that you knew would stretch the boundaries of your bodymindspirit?  The thought of doing so brings about many feelings...anxiety, excitement, curiosity and many big question marks.

I don't know how it would be for you, but when I first thought of riding a century (yes, a 100 miles on a bike in one day) to raise money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in 1999, I wasn't sure that I would be able to do it.  Up to the time that I started training, the most I had ridden in a single day was 30 leisurely miles, far different from a focused 100 miles in a single day.  Yet, with training, focus, support and commitment to raise money for a good cause, I was able to achieve that goal.  What a high that was!

Now, I'm on the road again, except this time it is with my feet, not my bike.  I have signed up to walk a half-marathon - 13.1 miles - in the Baltimore Marathon on October 13, 2007 to raise money for the LLS.  I must give my daughter, Carrie, credit for getting me involved with the LLS again.  She had decided to do the half-marathon, and I decided to join her. 

So, we are now walking regularly during the week and training with our team on Saturday mornings. LLS does a wonderful job of organizing training and teams, one reason why I am happy to be a part of their mission again.  They also do a wonderful job with the funds that are raised: over 75% of the funds raised go directly to research or support for families.  Equally amazing is that since 1988, more than 300,000 volunteer participants have raised more than $700 million with the Team in Training program!

I'll be writing regular updates about my training and experiences with Team In Training and LLS, including my progress toward reaching my fundraising goal, which is $2500.  And, I am boldly going to let you, my readers, know two ways that you can contribute if you wish:

• Online donations are gratefully accepted at http://www.active.com/donate/tntmd/tntmdJmeacha
• Checks made out to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society can be mailed to Terra Enterprises, Inc., P.O. Box 397, Laurel, MD  20723

Please feel free to send this message to at least 5 friends/associates/family members.  All donations are accepted with great gratitude and are fully tax deductible.

Have any of you had experiences with similar events?  If so, are you willing to share your feelings and experiences?  Let me know at reclaimingwellness@gmail.com.

I wish you peace, joy and many blessings,  Jana

Keep thinking 13 on the 13th...