News - Summer 2008

• Cambridge Cares
• Alpha Phi Omega Selects Gillian
• Argenta-Oreana Schools Pitch In
• Grandma and Grandpa host a garage sale

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the delay in updates, it's been a very busy spring. First and foremost, I want to tell you all that Gillian is doing just fine. She's on the list and still having fun. At camp this past weekend people said if you didn't know she was sick, you wouldn't realize it. Before I get on wit hthe news again, I want to say thank you. We couldn't have done what we have done so far without all of you.

• Cambridge Cares

Bekki (a longtime friend of Leslie) is a teacher in northwestern Illinois. This year she given the added bonus of being a Freshmen advisor. This means that once a week she sits with Freshmen for about 15 min. and we talk about life, problems etc. and try to bond with them in hopes that they don't drop out of school. ANYWAYS, her Freshmen were tired of sitting around talking about "teen problems" and wanted to move on and "really help someone". They knew about Bekki's friendship with Leslie and about Gillian's kidney problems and asked if they could come up with and execute some sort of fundraiser in her honor. Together they sat down on the computers and designed the shirt. They also helped her figure out colors, selling strategy, costs to print and how much per shirt they were wanting to ask people for,etc. The long and the short of it was they came up with the "Cambridge Cares" T-shirt. They charged $10 for the shirt and approximately $5 from every t-shirt went to COTA under Gillian's name. Cambridge is a very small (about 167 kids) school --and of that 51 people bought t-shirts (which is a HUGE turnout for 14-18year olds)!
The shirts are proudly worn on a daily basis, and the kids are constantly asking how Gillian Irons is doing!

So yeah basically nine kids in her freshmen advising class decided that instead of reading "teen problem" magazines they wanted to do something important. They worked together, worked out the details and raised over $250. Their mission when they started was to make a difference. They knew they wouldn't be able to raise money by the thousands, but hoped to send COTA a check that would pay for at least one medical bill and let the family know that even though they have never met in person 9 kids from Cambridge High School in Cambridge, IL cared enough about Gilly to spread the word and MAKE the community care!

• Alpha Phi Omega Selects Gillian Irons

The Illinois Wesleyan Chapter of Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity holds a annual fundraiser to raise money for a worthy cause. This year they decided to select Gillian as their charity. (Thanks to all the brothers looking our for their own). They raised over $310 for Gillian. Wow!!! This is terrific. It is amazing how many people are coming out of the woodwork to help.

• Argenta-Oreana Schools Pitch In

The A.O School district where Aunt Katie goes (Aunt Mandy and Mommy went their too) to held a penny wars competition threw the grade schools and high school. The grade school raised over 620 dollars and the high school raised over 540 dollars. That is amazing when you consider that the school district is fairly small. In addition, the senior class gave $695 dollars to the cause. The class raised money over their four years of high school for their senior trip. This was the left ove3r money and they wanted it to go to a good cause. A huge thanks to all of them. They even invited Leslie, Gillian, and Grandma for pizza and the check. Thanks so much.

• Upcoming Garage Sale

Grandma Leta and Grandpa Bruce will be hosting a yard and bake sale on Saturday, June 7, 2008 from 8-4 at 215 South Woodale Ave., Decatur, IL. Videos, books, numerous children's items including toys and clothing, xmas items, furniture, adult clothing, and much misc. Rain date will be June 14,2008. They hope everyone can come out and have fun.

News - March 2008:

• Gillian is on the list!
• Fund Raiser a Messy Success!

Hi Everyone,

First and foremost, for those of you who didn't know, Gillian is officially on the list to receive a kidney. Mom and Dad have the bags packed and the pager on them at all times. The call could come any time now and then they have the mad dash to St. Louis for life saving transplant. We don't know when the call will come, but we have faith that it will come and it will come soon. We hope that you can all send good thoughts, prayers, and well wishes to Gillian.

Second and almost as important

"THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU"

Yesterday was the first major fundraiser of the campaign and it was a a resounding success. What do you get when you have 75lbs of spaghetti + 40 loaves of bread + 90lbs of hamburger + 300 guests + countless volunteers? The answer is lots of food, fun, and almost 10,000 dollars! You read that correctly. Through bingo, silent auctions, 50/50 raffles, free will donations, and the kindness of loved ones and strangers, we raised almost 10,000. That money pales in comparison to how much love and fellowship was had. Gillian had lots of fun selling tickets, playing with kids, and talking to the crowd on the microphone. Mom and Dad can't thank everyone enough (even though they will try). From the numerous business that donated food and prizes (a list will be up soon) to the countless volunteers who donated their time (driving across state to be there, cooking, serving, cleaning) to those friends and family who donated their treasure and talents. They would like to point out a few individuals who without them none of this would have happened. First to Great-Grandma Lois, Great-Grandpa Bob, Great-Grandpa Roberts,Great-Aunt Lisa, Great-Aunt Shelly who without them none of this would have happened. (And yes, the Great is not just a title for them). Of course all of their significant others and children were definitely part of the fun. Another thanks to Robin for helping to announce the bingo, paint kids faces, and be the M.C for most of the event.

Again a great big thank you for everyone. (If you want some spaghetti we can probably make that happen). We hope that we can count on all of your support for the fundraisers in the future yet to come.