The Lincoln Classic was Sunday and I can’t thank everyone
enough for making it a success. Thank you Maria and Brian. You’re amazing, and
a force to be reckoned with. Unstoppable. Thank you Kerri, Alison, Kristy,
Lindsey, Andi, Missie, Bri, Erin, Kelly, Charissa, and everyone else who made
the Lincoln Classic possible. For asking businesses for gift cards, for putting
together raffle baskets, for sending donations, for taking time out of your day
to come play golf and have dinner with us. Thank you John and Brian for doing
the public speaking when I couldn’t pull it together to say it myself. Thank
you!
We received so much support and love and it’s humbling. The
donation amount is not yet final, pending final invoice from the Hamilton Elks
(a beautiful golf course, by the way). But it’s safe to say we’re over $8,500! We
were told by folks at Children’s that this was not a small event, and it’s not
a small amount of money to have raised. We agree! I want to take a moment to
tell everyone who participated what you’ve done.
1) You’ve raised money for the Gastroenterology,
Hepatology & Nutrition Department at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical
Center. Why is this such a big deal? I have a friend who is always saying “Money
buys science, and science saves lives.” I believe that wholeheartedly. By giving
resources to the folks at CCHMC you allow them to keep poking and pushing at
their boundaries, making them question why the boundaries are there and how to
get around them. The more they poke, push and question, the better they get at
saving babies like Lincoln. And babies like Lincoln need saving.
2) You reminded Lincoln’s family that we’re not
alone. The grief of losing a child is isolating because it’s a pain most can’t
relate to. Which is a good thing. We don’t want anyone else to know the kind of
pain we know. But it’s lonely. Seeing so much support from friends, family and even
folks we’ve never met reminded us we’re not alone in our grief. People are
still standing by us, loving Lincoln.
3) You allowed us the opportunity to continue to
parent Lincoln. The thing is, when you lose a child you don’t lose the need to
take care of them. That ache in your heart that says you need to watch over your
baby and make sure they’re ok? Still there. But you lose the ability to take
care of them the way your heart tells you to. It’s an incredibly helpless feeling.
Make no mistake. Maria and Brian did the bulk of the work for the Lincoln Classic.
But John and I were able to pick up small pieces of the work and it let us feel
like we were doing something to take care of Lincoln. We were honoring him and
helping people remember him and it took away a piece of that helplessness.
These things are a big deal. Thank you. You’re amazing. We’re
already looking forward to next year’s Lincoln Classic!
