The plan is taking shape
More friends and family have said they want to come to the rally in Savanah. My niece Christina wants to come. I might have to pass her a few bucks to get her there, but she and Mike adored each other. She got him tickets to a Slayer concert. I still have the hat, worn and dirty from wear.
Shannon and Matt and the kids are coming, so I’ll get to play with my sweet little Cassie and Liam. Shannon was Mike’s favorite cousin from the time they were very little. It started when he was 4 and she was 3. We were hiking in the woods behind my sister’s house and we came to a fork in the path. Shannon turned around and asked which one to take and Mike pointed to the one on the right.
“That’s right,” Ellen said. “That was really good.”
Shannon looked at Mike with adoring eyes and said, “Oh Mike, you’re so smart. You know eveeything.”
Ellen decided she had to have a talk with her daughter, but it was too late. Mike adored her for the rest of his life, and she adored him. They both have the twisted Boyd sense of humor, and they both know their mothers are more than a little crazy.
We lost Ellen two years ago this week to lung cancer and Mike in April to colon cancer. Shannon and I lean on each other whenever we need support. She’s an amazing young woman.
But then, so is Christina. She’s bold and in-your-face, which Mike loved. But he also loved the sweet, vulnerable side of her that she rarely shows anyone. God forbid anyone know she’s scared or hurt. She’s such a Boyd woman.
I saw Bill Murdock of Eblen Charities today and we can collect money to be distributed to people in need under the Eblen umbrella. So, we’re going to start the Life o’ Mike Fund soon. It will be a part of Eblen Charities to start. It could stay there permanently because Eblen, a home-grown charity, is going places and doing big things, and Life o’ Mike will be part of that.
We’re starting to think we can make a difference. Now we just have to do it.
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a new peer support program for people newly diagnosed with chronic or serious illness or with a new disability and their caregivers.
Patient Pals are people who have experience with various illnesses and disabilities, who can help someone newly diagnosed or with a new disability work through the fear, frustration, confusion and grief often experienced in the first few months.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
People with new illness or disability fare better when they have a role model -- someone who can help them negotiate their new path in life.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
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