I need your help...

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Sunday May 23, 2010 · 5:38 PM PDT

2010/05/23 · 17:38

There have been hundreds of diaries lately, asking for your money to Candidate X or Candidate Y. And Kossacks are always willing to donate to help elect more and better Democrats. But now I'd like to ask you if you could help me raise money for a different cause: the American Cancer Society.

For the past two years I've participated in the ACS's "Relay for Life", an overnight walkathon that's raised millions of dollars since 1986 to help fight cancer. And each year I've asked Kossacks to help me reach my fundraising goal. With your help, I raised over $500 the past two Relays. This year is, unfortunately, the last year I'll be participating in Relay for Life and I want to make a statement. I want to double what I've raised in the past two years. So my goal this year is $500. I'd like to ask for your help once again. I come from a very small, lower-middle class town and I can't do it without your generosity.

Instead of just joining a Relay team, I've decided to captain my own team this year in honor of my aunt, who lost her fight to cancer in April.

I have just under a month to reach my goal (the Relay is June 18-19), and I'm hoping you can help me. Please go to my donation page to give to this great cause.

Want to know where your money goes when you donate to my cause?

Last year, thanks to Relay donations, the American Cancer Society, New England Division, provided:

More than 1,030 women facing a breast cancer diagnosis the chance to talk with knowledgeable Reach to Recovery® volunteers, all breast cancer survivors
More than 1,900 patients with approximately 19,000 rides to treatment
Free lodging to hundreds of patients and caregivers at its three Hope Lodges, in Burlington, VT, Worcester, MA, and Boston
More than 1,400 services to nearly 600 patients and caregivers through American Cancer Society Patient Navigators, now working with cancer patients at 9 New England hospitals.
More than 2,800 women with tips on how to deal with appearance-related side effects of treatment, through its Look Good...Feel Better® program.
Nearly 250 children and teens with cancer a week-long summer camp experience
Cancer information to New Englanders who made 45,000 calls to our toll-free hotline - 1.800.227.2345 - manned by cancer information specialists around the clock, 365 days a year.

And, that's only a partial list. I didn't even mention that it was American Cancer Society-funded research that led to mammography, the Pap test, discovery of the breast cancer genes, the cure for childhood leukemia, and so much more.

Thank you for all of your help. I can never thank you enough.

INCENTIVE: I can't give a prize or anything to people who donate, but I will write a haiku or short poem about any topic you want if you donate $25 or more. It'll be worth a lot when I'm famous! :) It's not much, but it'll make things a bit more interesting.

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