In February 2013, I posted on the anniversary date of
Kelly’s diagnosis: "One
Year Ago Today". Anytime someone asks about Kelly and her story, I like to point him in the direction of this
post. It’s a good starting point for
both its retrospective view of the first 12 months of her struggle, and for an
understanding of the phenomenon of Team Kelly.
It’s also a testament to just how brave and tough she was.
I cherish every memory of Kelly, the best and the worst, and
there hasn't been one second since June 1 when I wouldn't have been willing to
relive even the very toughest moment all over again just for the chance to hear
her voice and touch her again. But I
won’t keep reliving February 13, 2012 for the rest of my life. I want to bury it with this thought –
recently up until that moment, Kelly and I searched our hearts often for a new
direction in our lives. We were blessed
beyond measure with four healthy children, incredible friendships, loving
family close by, a new church family, and a great job with a great company. We
had, up to that moment, lived an almost charmed life. It
wasn't dissatisfaction so much as restlessness and perhaps even a little
guilt. Irony is indeed the key
ingredient to a great story.
What I’d rather do than focus on this turning point in our
lives, is celebrate a different one, and try as best I can to give new meaning
to February, for myself and those closest to me. I went back and checked the dates, and I was
quite startled to realize just how quickly things happened in those first few
days following the results of that first CT Scan. On Wednesday night, February 15, 2012, Gayla
Cruikshank literally created this blog with the first post: "We
Gather Together". That post
chronicled a significant event – a prayer gathering at my house where more than
50 of our closest friends and family members came to support us and ask for
God’s blessings on Kelly, me and our kids.
So I think it’s fair to say that Team Kelly was in fact born on February
15, 2012. Over the following few days,
things happened rapidly, and I think it’s worth looking back over those first
few blog posts to appreciate how far this blog and TK have come. I posted for the first time, by proxy, on
February 19: "Some
Thoughts" that sum up my frame of mind at the time. But even then, I still had no way of
appreciating how powerful that Kellybridge and Team Kelly would be in our
lives, and in the lives of many around us.
The newly incorporated Team Kelly Foundation recently was
able to grant $10,000 to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, strengthening
the bond between TK and PanCAN that was formed in November of 2012 with our
team’s strong turnout and fundraising at the annual DFW Purplestride. Additionally, we provided camp scholarships
to two full cabins of kids, one for Camp Sanguinity and one for Camp Esperanza,
for this upcoming summer at Camp John Marc.
Camp Sanguinity and Camp Esperanza are week-long summer camp sessions at
CJM for kids with cancer. I’d encourage
you to learn more about one of mine and Kelly’s favorite charities (www.campjohnmarc.org). So already you can see the profound impact of
Kelly’s journey and its story chronicled through this blog. We look forward to many more years of service
to men, women, and children suffering from cancer and the effects of its
treatment, and we look forward to a day whenever we all remember cancer as a disease without cure. In the meantime, we want to help cancer
patients and their family members “Fight Like Kel!”
So next February, we’ll celebrate this time of year as a
time of promise and change. We’ll
celebrate the birth of Team Kelly. We’ll
celebrate the beginning of a new chapter in Carol’s and Blake’s lives as they
launched their new business, ringing up their first sale, on February 13, 2014
(I think I was their first official customer).
I encourage you to stop by Crave Popcorn in Plano to get your bag of
“Team Kelly” flavored popcorn, and support TKF!
Once you walk in, you’ll be hooked – I promise!
We’re so thankful to God for new reasons to mark these dates
on our calendars, and for great new memories to come!
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