Life o' Mike sponsors a 5K bike ride/walkathon/fun run Aug. 28 at the NC Arboretum. Registration is $25, but feel free to raise more from sponsors. To register, e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com. For more information, call 828-243-6712.

We need your help now more than ever. Your tax-deductible donation will help us get Patient Pals and Family Friends off the ground. Please consider a gift in honor or in memory of a loved one. Donate here or mail your donation to Life o' Mike, PO Box 1213, Asheville, NC 28802.

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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