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Mark & I just completed the Big Sur Marathon together! April 29, 2012
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I trust this letter finds you and your family enjoying the New Year!

As we begin 2013, I have set an ambitious goal that I would like to share with all of you and one of which I hope you may wish to be a part.  It is a goal larger than me and it honors hundreds of courageous men and women while also memorializing a very dear friend of mine who died last year.

The path leading to this goal began many years ago and has taken a circuitous path that I fully believe has been of God's design.  Not all things along this path have been good, but I trust all things will work together for good as God promises His people in Romans 8:28.  

This story began 35 years ago when I met a young boy who grew into a sailor and served our country in Iraq as a naval intelligence specialist designing and participating in combat missions for our country's special operations teams in Iraq.  As affects far too many of our returning heroes, he suffered greatly from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  The overwhelming burden of his experiences led to him losing all that he held dear, ultimately including his life this past June. His name is David Banner and he died of liver disease.

The story also involves two local missions that have deeply touched hundreds of lives in my community, Love in Action and Mission at the Cross. Over the past 15 years, I've met many from both missions whose stories of God's grace and His ability to deliver men and their families from the devastation of substance abuse has deeply moved and affected me.

How are these stories connected?  Last year as David was struggling to find his way, I tried to connect him with The Mission at the Cross and Love In Action.  I thought it would help David to connect with other men who had lost hope and found new hope and promise in Christ. Thankfully David was not without Christ, but he had lost his way and felt hopeless. He never found the strength to make that connection and you know the rest of the story.

What does all this have to do with my goal?  Last year, as part of my Medical Alliance volunteer work, I had the pleasure of meeting Patrick House (Season 10's winner of the Biggest Loser reality TV show). When he discovered I was a runner, he offered me a spot on his team to run the Boston Marathon! This is a charity spot, and is the only way a slow runner like me could ever hope to enter the Boston Marathon. Then he revealed the charity he was fielding a team for was The Liver Foundation, an organization whose goal is to promote education and support research for the treatment and cure of liver disease. The next week I discovered my friend David had liver disease.  He died 3 months later.    

What can you do?  I must raise $4000 for the Liver Foundation and I need you to help me reach the goal. The Boston Marathon is Monday, April 15 and I'll be running in honor of the men whose lives and souls have been saved thru the ministries of Mission at the Cross and Love In Action, and in memory of my friend and a true hero, Petty Officer First Class David Banner.

No amount is too small.  I need you on my team not only to help raise funds, but to honor the courage of these men and the service of our veterans.

Donating is easy, click "Sponsor Me" to get started.   

 

Thank you for supporting the Run for Research 2013 on April 15, 2013!

The Liver Life Challenge is a celebration of my commitment to a world free of liver disease. Please help me make that goal a reality! I support the American Liver Foundation® because it:

  • Advocates on behalf of 30 million Americans with liver disease on the federal, state, and local levels.
  • Provides education programs, support services, and outreach activities that reach more than 200,000 individuals annually and raise awareness on liver disease prevention and management.
  • Is the largest non-governmental supporter of liver disease research in the U.S. and since 1979, the American Liver Foundation Research Awards Program has provided more than $24 million to more than 750 qualified scientists and physicians.
Please send offline, non-cash donations to our office at:
Run for Research Team | American Liver Foundation | 88 Winchester Street | Newton | MA | 02461
*Please be sure to include the Challenge Participant's name with your check.
All registration fees and donations for this event are nonrefundable.

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