Living On Through Memories

In Judaism, it is said that a person lives on through others’ memories. I want to tell you a little bit about someone who passed away on Monday of colon cancer, so that he can live on by taking a little spot in your collective memories.

Mark Wittenberg, the man who I referenced in my last blog, quietly lost his valiant battle with colon cancer at his home this week. He just turned 36 years old and is survived by his wife and two children (2 and 4 years old). He was an avid rock climber, mountain biker, golfer and fisherman as well as a talented public affairs strategist. An e-mail that was sent yesterday by one of his colleagues said “He could light up a room just by walking past it, most often with some kind of smart ass remark. He had so much energy and life and he pushed us all to savor life as he did.”

Of course I found the wording in her e-mail curious. Of all of the things to note about him – she chose to state that he was a “smart ass.” Well, I’ve decided that Mark’s memory needs to be a part of our Get Your Rear in Gear team: Eve’s Smartasses. Therefore, I plan to dedicate my run (ok – my walk) to Mark’s memory.

Mark’s passing hit me hard. I realized that his story could so easily have been mine. The last that I heard from him, he told me that he was going to be ok. He was going to fight the cancer and win. Although he has lost his physical battle with cancer, his fight will continue on through me and all of you who join me either by participating on my team on October 4 or donating to my efforts.

To make life easy for you, the following is the information on how to register and donate.

To sign up to be on our terrific team, just do the following:

Go to: http://www.getyourrearingear.com/events/get-your-rear-in-gear-events/san-francisco-october-2009

If you are going to run/walk with our team, click on “Register Today” Please note that it is a little bit of work signing up, but just plow through it and you WILL get to the end. I promise.

If you are unable to join our team, but would like to donate, click on “Donate Today” I recognize that many of you may not be able to be on the team, but you still can participate in a very meaningful way. You would just input my name and it will give you an opportunity to pledge.

I almost forgot one of the most important points – I saw Dr. Fisher last week for my checkup and he said that my body continues to show no evidence of disease. As we head into the new Jewish Year, I wish all of you much health and happiness and urge you all to take a few extra moments to hug your family. L'Shana Tova.

We’re Racing to beat Cancer!

Last weekend, I was honored to be able to join my oncologist, Dr. Fisher, and his fabulous right-hand person, Margreet Love, at the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life event. Of course, our team was a little on the pathetic side, since we didn’t actually DO the relay all night (or really during much of the day). We walked a few laps here and there, but for the most part we sat around talking. Most of the members of the team were going through chemo, so they had a good excuse for not being super energetic. Unfortunately, since I haven’t been on chemo for a year, I don’t think that I can use that excuse anymore.

Dr. Fisher was one of the featured speakers at the event with the keynote being given by a one of his other patients, Gary, who was told he had just months to live seven years ago. Every major cancer center in the country told him that they could not do anything for him. However, Dr. Fisher said he would try to help. And here we are, seven years later, with Gary proudly proclaiming that he is cancer-free. It was incredibly inspirational.

Which brings me to my next source of inspiration – the Get Your Rear in Gear walk/run on October 4 in San Francisco. (By the way, the event in SF is actually 4 miles, rather than 5K – not sure why, but in the interest of full disclosure, I wanted to bring this to your attention.) I am truly hoping that we can put together a great team to do this walk/run around Lake Merced. To sign up to be on our terrific team, just do the following:

Go to: http://www.getyourrearingear.com/events/get-your-rear-in-gear-events/san-francisco-october-2009

If you are going to run/walk with our team, click on “Register Today”

Please note that it is a little bit of work signing up, but just plow through it and you WILL get to the end. I promise.

If you are unable to join our team, but would like to donate, click on “Donate Today”

I recognize that many of you may not be able to be on the team, but you still can participate in a very meaningful way. Please consider donating to my run (ok – truthfully most likely it will be a walk, but it still counts). You just input my name and it will give you an opportunity to pledge.

So what is the name of our team? Well – our placeholder is “Eve’s Smartasses.” Since I’m not so sure that the name is “family friendly” enough for this race, we may either change the name of the team before the race (anyone have any cute ideas?) or we’ll add a tag line something like this “A smart ass is one that gets checked.” Obviously, this is still a work in progress….

So - we’ve got a little over a month before show time. I really really really hope that I’ll have a nice big team of friends to participate with me.

One last note - when I originally found out about this race – I was very enthusiastic. To be honest, my enthusiasm waned in the last couple of months when my life and all of my responsibilities overwhelmed me. However, I have become friends with a young colon cancer patient over the past several weeks. This past week he had to tell his young children that the doctors have given him less than 6 months to live. He is in the hospital fighting valiantly every single day to prove those doctors wrong. I am now walking/running for him and every other colon cancer patient who desperately needs the medical community to find a cure. I pray that it will be a very very long time before I have the conversation that Mark had last week with his children. And therefore, I am officially rededicating myself to do everything possible to raise not only funds but also public awareness to beat this destructive disease.

Please join me in my fight.

Thank You, I'm Clear & Gear Up!

Today, I have many things to write about: the American Cancer Society breakfast last Friday, last week's colonoscopy and gearing up for October 4th!

First, the good news. For those of you who were wondering, the American Cancer Society event was a tremendous success. I was so amazed by the number of my friends and colleagues (who are also my dear friends) who came out to support this phenomenal organization. Not only did they hear a dynamic speaker, Dr. Nina Bissell, talk about her incredible work to understand cancer, but they also got to meet the famous Dr. George Fisher. Together we contributed more than a third of the profits for the entire event! A huge thank you to those of you who came and also to those of you who were unable to come, but sent checks anyway. I want to especially thank my friends at the Union Pacific Railroad, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad and Webcor for sponsoring this wonderful event.

Next, I had my one year colonoscopy check-up last Tuesday. This time it wasn't nearly as traumatic as last year, since I knew that it was not going to be a big deal. Unfortunately, during my colonocopy, they did find a polyp. It was spliced off and I just received word today that it wasn't cancerous. However, it would have become cancerous had it not been removed. The doctor was concerned with how quickly my body produces polyps and therefore, I will be returning in one year for another colonoscopy. For those of you who are putting off that colonoscopy - call the doctor NOW! Trust me - the colonocopy is a breeze...and chemo isn't.

Finally, the Get Your Rear in Gear 5K walk/run for colon cancer is coming up on October 4. And - Dr. Fisher just confirmed that he'll be on the team (I really didn't give him a choice). It will be a fabulous day. Right after the run, there will be breakfast, kids activities and all sorts of fun. We still have to come up with a name for our team...any ideas? For more information about the event go to:
www.getyourrearingear.com/events/get-your-rear-in-gear-events/san-francisco-october-2009.

I feel so fortunate to have such an incredible support network. You are making a difference in the battle against cancer. I am confident that together we will win this fight.

Please Join Me

The big event is almost here: The American Cancer Society Action Network breakfast. Its purpose is to ensure that cancer research is a national priority.

The breakfast will take place on July 10 from 7-8:30 am at the Oracle Conference Center in Redwood Shores. I am coming to you, my friends, to ask for your help. I am hosting a table at this important event (which is chaired by my amazing oncologist Dr. George Fisher) and would deeply appreciate it if you would join me at my table. The contribution request is small ($100 is a suggestion) but means so much.

Please let me know by this Friday, July 3rd if you will join me. For those of you who have already committed to participating - thank you. I hope that the rest of you will join me next week and make a strong statement that we want to beat this deadly disease.

Cancer Research Meets Politics

When the man who is keeping you cancer-free asks for help, the response requires no hesitation. My amazing oncologist Dr. George Fisher is that man. And the help he’s asking for combines two of my favorite things: raising money for cancer research and of course, politics.

To that end, I have joined the Host Committee and am a Table Captain for the 2009 “Bay Area Research Breakfast.” It’s a benefit for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN). ACS CAN is the non-profit, non-partisan advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society. We’re dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem, working to support policies that will make cancer research a top national priority.

Cancer research is the engine behind our ongoing progress in the fight to defeat cancer. Research offers hope to millions of people who face cancer – both for better treatments, enhanced opportunities to prevent and detect the disease early and improve quality of life for people touched by cancer. But like those experiencing cancer, those who conduct lifesaving cancer research need an advocate to fight on their behalf. ACS CAN is that voice!

To forward the goals of ACS CAN, the ACS CAN “2009 Bay Area Research Breakfast” will take place on July 10 from 7:00 – 8:30 a.m. at the Oracle Conference Center in Redwood Shores. World-renowned cancer researcher Dr. Mina Bissell, from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, will be our keynote speaker. Dr. Bissell is the 2008 American Cancer Society National Medal of Honor recipient. But the best part about coming is that you’ll get to meet Dr. Fisher!!!

Please support and attend this wonderful event as a guest at my table. Of course if you live outside of the area, I’m sure that they would still be happy to take your donation. During the event, all guests will be asked to support ACS CAN at the highest level possible with a suggested minimum of $100.

In addition, they are also looking for sponsors and several of my dear friends have stepped up to the plate. (Thank you Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroads!) If that is of interest to you or your company, I would love to talk with you about it.

Please let me know if you will be able to support this magnificent effort and join me at my table. I am very concerned about filling my table – so please please please come!

I know that a breakfast meeting is hard, but isn’t it worth it to wake up to cure cancer?!

Father's Day Fund - The Perfect Gift!

Now that it’s June, I’m sure that you are all wondering what the heck to give your father for Father’s Day. Fortunately, I have the perfect answer to your troubles. I am thrilled to announce that my friends at the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association have done it again. They are moving forward with the Father's Day Fund for the second year in a row. Thanks to your support last year, the Father’s Day Fund is now a well established charitable effort.

As you may recall from last year, it was around this time they were talking about how many people they knew who were either cancer patients or survivors and came up with a brilliant idea. They would encourage people to give the gift of a cure for cancer for Father’s Day, rather than another tie or other useless gift.

So, they created this incredible website http://www.fathersdayfund.org/. They’ve updated the website from last year – giving is just as simple, but there are more card designs to choose from and now you can download them yourself. They’ve also linked in commercial e-card services for people to use if they’d like.

They hope to make 2009 even more successful than 2008. As you may recall, they got great TV coverage on ABC News which featured my family (you can click on the link on the upper left hand side of my blog to view the clip).

Just to remind you, they do not handle the money themselves, this site simply directs you to the cancer research institutions (my favorite being Stanford, of course). However, they would love for you to let them know if you participated, so that they can determine the success of their efforts.

Please spread the word to everyone you know - friends, colleagues and all your social networks. Forward the website information and visit them online yourself over the course of the next three weeks.

Oh - and one other piece of news - I went for blood work and my CT scan today at Stanford. Amazingly, they got back my results this afternoon and I was informed that my blood work was normal and that the CT scan showed "no evidence of disease." Hallelujah.

It's Been Awhile

Wow – it’s been a long time since I’ve written on this blog. I’ve thought about writing many times, but I just didn’t take the time. For example – after watching 20 minutes of the Farrah Fawcett TV special that captured her going through chemo, I was going to write about what an idiot I was to watch the program. Going through chemo was perhaps the worst experience of my life (taking the bar exam was a close second) so why would I sit and watch someone else go through it? Some days I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed.

I was also going to blog about my experiences visiting with many other cancer patients and survivors over the past couple of months. The strength, love and compassion that emanates from so many of them is extraordinary. Interestingly – I was just about to write “it’s an honor to be one of them,” but as I started to write this I thought “what the heck am I saying – it stinks to be one of them.” But they are an amazing bunch nonetheless.

Another noteworthy happening occurred over the past couple of weeks – Dawes Eddy, the father of my best friend from high school, summited Mt. Everest. He was the oldest U.S. citizen to hit the peak (unfortunately, his record was broken 3 days later by a guy who was one year older than him…) I was going to write something compelling about his difficult journey and compare it to surviving cancer – but again, I never got around to writing that blog entry. (If you are interested in reading about his climb, go to the Discovery Channel’s site and do a search for Mount Everest then look for Everest 2009. There’s a good blog posted there by Ed Wardle, the summit cameraman who followed Dawes to the top.)

I was trying to figure out why I haven’t written when I’ve had many thoughts that only a year ago, would have warranted a blog entry. I think it’s because I no longer dwell on these moments. I seem to be able to acknowledge them and move on. Cancer no longer defines me. I’ve stopped beginning every conversation with a statement indicating that I’m either a cancer patient or survivor. Although I do think about cancer every day, it is not every minute or even every hour and sometimes it is only a fleeting thought as I go through my day.

You will be hearing from me a little more frequently over the next few weeks, since I already know what my next blog entry will be about. (I know that the suspense is probably killing you…)

In the meantime, on Tuesday I will be returning to Stanford for some tests just to make sure that all is well with me. Once again, please send your positive thoughts my way…