A weblog about all the inconveniences we encounter in everyday life. Diapers, junk food, cruelty to animals, hostile people, rude cell phone behavior, cancer, terrible customer service (also known as "why the hell am I giving this company my money?"), ignorance, parking, bad spelling, family disturbances, office politics, death (the biggest inconvenience of all) and more. Thanks for saving me thousands of dollars in therapy by reading my blog. It might even make you laugh.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Get Your Pink Wings Here!

Melanie, Me, Sedona, Nanette & Courtney


In 2002 when I was going through chemotherapy, I ordered a few small items from a web site called gardenpaper.com. To my surprise, when my order arrived, a check was enclosed for the Race for the Cure, a check in an even greater amount than my order!

Melanie, the owner of Garden Paper, had gone on my web site truelori.com, and she read my story. At the time I was raising money for the NYC Race for the Cure, and Melanie wanted to make a donation towards my fundraising. I was immensely touched by this gesture, and by the heart behind the people at gardenpaper.com. I didn't realize at the time that there were no Garden Paper "people," because Melanie runs it all herself. And I didn't know that Melanie, too, had a story. Her sister Courtney is a two-time survivor of breast cancer, and together they have been fighting breast cancer one order at a time. Courtney is the owner of pinkwings.com.

I never forgot Melanie's gesture and I continued to order little things from the web site from time to time. Finally in February at the Young Survivors Conference in Philadelphia I got to meet Melanie, who remembered me (!), her sister Courtney and their friend Nanette.

Melanie and Courtney give back ten percent of their web site sales to breast cancer walks and organizations, and for special events they give back 20 percent. Best of all, their merchandise is SUPER CUTE and they have designed most of it themselves. My favorite are the pink wings angel pins from Courtney and the new I Care design from Melanie.

A few weeks ago Melanie e-mailed and told me they would be in New York at the Revlon Run/Walk For Women. She was looking for volunteers to help out at their booth. I was excited to help them out, and my relative lack of sleep this past week didn't deter me from getting up this morning, hopping on the Metro-North train and meeting them in Central Park.

I met Melanie, Courtney, Nanette and Courtney's daughter, Sedona, in the park around 9:30 a.m. They'd been there since before 7 a.m. and awake well before that! I had a blast helping them out, but unfortunately it was a pretty darn depressing, rainy, muddy day and although we did a brisk business at times, sales were down because of the weather. Hopefully they made enough so they'll be able to come back next year! In the meantime check out their web sites (listed in the links at the right of my blog) because you might just have to have some of these adorable breast cancer awareness items for you and your friends. The girls generously sent me home with some sweet gifts from their stock, but I'm sure I'll be ordering again soon!

One of my favorite parts of the day was watching husbands with their wives, mothers with daughters, groups of friends, people who walked through mud and on crutches to get to our booth, and seeing how much they want to do something for the battle against cancer and for their loved ones with cancer. And knowing there is only so much they can do and only so many ways they can be there, they showered them lovingly with gifts.

And now for some sleep ....

3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

hey lori - your blog is great. thanks for sharing. we really should try to meet up one of these days when you are in the city.... i do the revlon walk every year, but couldnt drag my pregnant self out yesterday. hope to walk again next year with 2 babies in tow!

jennifer

3:45 PM, May 01, 2005

 
Blogger Laurel said...

Lori
I met Courtney last year at Courage Night here in L.A. She is so sweet..we talked a bit about how their should be a YSC affiliate in Los Angeles..can you believe there isn't???? I guess Angelenos are just too darn busy..myself included :-(

9:54 AM, May 02, 2005

 
Blogger Sue Flaska said...

Hey Lori, just wanted to thiank you for the link to that breat cancer web page...I bought a shirt and it's awesome! Thanks again!

11:31 AM, May 12, 2005

 

Post a Comment

<< Home