Raise Them Funds!

Well, I am sick now, thanks to the ever-slacking cilia in my lungs. It may have started as a cold; I'm really not sure, since it is so hard for me to tell when I actually have one of those due to the fact that it's like having a permanent head and chest cold anyway when your cilia are on a lifelong hiatus. Yeesh! At any rate, I am down for the count, bundling up in sweats now that fall has suddenly pounced upon San Diego, sipping medicinal teas from giant ceramic mugs and spending quality time with my spazzy but affectionate cat. And being sick also provides me with this lovely segue into a plea for donations:

That's right, kids! I really need your help. The PCD Foundation really needs your help. Hundreds of families in the U.S. with sick kids need your help. Truly. Many of you have already received an email about the fundraiser from me, but I humbly ask you to read this post, too.

Here's the scoop: I have PCD (primary ciliary dyskinesia: primary=genetic, ciliary=cilia, dyskinesia=they don't move correctly, if at all), and so does my brother Ken. What this means is that due to some faulty genes, our cilia are malformed and don't work. This is bad because cilia are the body's main defense against airborne crap and other malevolent forces . Meaning that when they work, they move all the nasty inhaled bacteria, dirt, dust, smoke, perfume, etc. out of your lungs and nose. When they don't work, all that stuff just sits in the sinuses and lungs and causes multiple infections and scarring. Every single adult patient I know over the age of 50 is on the list for a lung transplant or has already gotten one. Yeah, that's bad. Cilia are also present in your ears and brain case and in the fallopian tubes. Much havoc ensues. Please PLEASE go to the PCD Foundation link and read more about this!! The link is on the right, and it's also right here:

PCD Foundation: PLEASE READ!

Now, here's what you really need to know: the PCD Foundation (PCDF here on out) is a VERY small nationwide organization, and our goal is to help families of patients with this disorder, to garner research funds, and to increase awareness within the medical community. This is a very rare condition, so hardly anything concrete is known about it. Many families with young just-diagnosed children feel completely lost, and they turn to us for help. PCDF has a patient education weekend once a year, where physicians and researchers donate their time to give talks on what we have discovered about the disease thus far. It is extraordinarily helpful to patients, and provides a meeting place for interested medical personnel as well.

The PCDF lost its only corporate sponsor a while ago, and the only way we currently have to generate funds is through small fundraisers put on by individuals around the country. We need to raise $30,000 this year in order to be able to survive as an organization. I am putting on a fundraising walk in San Diego and my goal is to raise $4,000. This is a lot! And I absolutely CANNOT do it without the help of you fine folks. Everybody I have spoken to lately is willing to donate, and that is wonderful. But I can't raise $4000 on my own from donations. Only TWO people have promised to walk with me for the fundraiser. This is just not enough! What I really need for you to do if you live in the San Diego area, is to commit to attending the PCD Spooky walk as a registered walker. As such, you will get to walk around beautiful Lake Miramar on October 29th and show off your Halloween costume AND get people to pledge to give you money for the PCDF. All you need to do is to email me at pcdwalk2006 @ earthlink.net (take the spaces out; I put those there to deter spam harvester thingies). I will email you everything you need to know about how to walk and get pledges from folks. It's really a lot easier than you think! If you ask 5 people for only $10 each, then you'll generate $50 for the PCDF! Easy! You have 5 friends and relatives, I'm sure.

If you live outside the area, you can still help. You can donate online! How easy is that? Go to the PCDF website and click on the "Donate Now" link on the left side of the page. We have a paypal account. If you don't have one, fear not--you can use a credit card. Please put (this is important) "San Diego Walk" in the comment box so we know that's where to credit the funds. Please donate as much as you can and as much as will make you feel good.

I know you are all busy people. I know that everybody else wants your money, too. But we are a struggling organization in desperate need of your help. Even if you can only give $5, that helps! Five bucks! That's $5 more than nothing. No donation is too small to be appreciated.

And remember, if you live here, please get some pledges and come walk with me! I really need the support. Did I mention that there will be free beer? Yeah, BEER! pcdwalk2006 @ earthlink.net (again, take out those spaces)

Thanks so much for your valuable time and attention, my friends. I really appreciate it. It means a lot to me on a very personal level when people help us out.