My favorite love story

It was March 1969.

A beautiful 21 year old brunette was on her way home from work in her burgundy 1966 Mustang. She stopped at the corner of Luray and Dewitt Avenue in the Del Ray section of Alexandria. Standing on the corner was a 20 year old lanky boy waiting for his friends to stop by so they could decide what their plans were for the night.

The girl stopped to say "hi" because she hadn't seen the boy in a while. They knew each other from growing up in the same neighborhood and attending the same high school but she had graduated a year before him. He had been a drummer in the marching band and she was a pom pom girl at GW High School. Something made her stop the car that day and talk with the boy for a while. Neither of them knew it would change their lives forever.

The boy had always thought the girl was "cute" but she always had a steady guy in high school so he never asked her out. The girl was a year ahead of him in school and he had lost track of her after she graduated. He was pleasantly surprised she had driven by and stopped to talk that day.

After they talked for a while, the boy realized the girl wasn't dating anyone so the light went off in his head and he called her the next day and asked her out. She said "yes" and that upcoming weekend they went on their first date to the Old Stein Restaurant in Washington, D.C. Afterwards, they went to Bassin's at 20th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

The boy and girl went out a lot over that month and started to get really close. Although it was only a month that they had been dating, they felt as if they'd been together for years. Along with the mutual physical attraction, they were amazed at how much they had in common and how comfortable they were together. She loved his honest, sweet and considerate nature. He loved the way she looked at him.

One month later, April 1969, the boy was drafted.

The boy had feelings for the girl but also knew he wouldn't be around long so he wouldn't make a commitment because he thought it wouldn't be fair to the girl.

The girl didn't want to be with anyone else. She would wait for him.

The girl went with the boy's parents to Ft. Benning, Georgia, when the boy graduated from Army Basic Training.  She missed him so very much and at Ft. Benning is when she knew for sure she wanted to be with him and only him. He was the one.

The girl also went with the boy's parents to the Atlanta airport when he was scheduled to go to Ft. Polk, Louisiana for advanced infantry training. The boy came home in September 1969 and the girl went to Dulles airport with his parents to meet him.

The boy was home for a couple of weeks and then the girl and his parents took him back to Dulles to head to Oakland, California. The boy's next stop would be Vietnam. The girl would continue to wait for him.

The boy and girl would keep in touch through U.S. mail. The boy was able to call once from Vietnam.  The girl had no desire to date anyone else. She knew they were meant to be together.

After spending a year fighting for his country in Vietnam, the boy knew what he wanted but didn't know what to expect when he got home. He found out the girl hadn't gone out with anyone while he was away and even when his brother invited her to parties, she wouldn't go. Being away from the girl for a year, the boy knew how much he loved her and missed her. He often thought about coming home to her, getting married and starting their life together. Those thoughts kept the boy sane while he was at war.

On Friday, March 13, 1970, the boy was wounded in Vietnam.  He wrote the girl and told her he was wounded but it "wasn't a big deal". The girl took the letter to the boy's parents who contacted his uncle who contacted a friend at the American Red Cross. The girl was very worried until the boy called home and she heard his voice.

While the boy was recovering, he auditioned for the U.S. Army Band. He was discharged from the Infantry and reenlisted in the Band.  In June 1970, the boy left Vietnam, came home for two weeks and then was reassigned to Germany for two years.  With each passing day the boy and girl continued to grow closer.

The girl was excited because she would now be able to visit him in Germany. The boy's father told him not to expect the girl to wait another two years for him because she had already waited one year while he was in Vietnam. The girl would continue to wait.

After being in Germany for a almost a year without the girl, the boy realized she was definitely the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. In Spring 1971, the girl went to Germany for two weeks to visit the boy. It was the first time she had flown. The girl and boy started talking marriage.

The boy wanted to get married in Germany but the girl knew that would upset her parents. Plans were made for the girl and boy to get married in Alexandria when the boy came home on leave for Christmas in 1971.

On January 8, 1972, the girl and the boy got married at First Baptist Church of Alexandria on King Street. On January 15, the girl went back to Germany with the boy, as his wife, to finish out the remainder of his tour in the Army.

To have and to hold

from this day forward

for better for worse

for richer for poorer

in sickness and in health

til death do us part.

 Today, January 8, 2016, this boy and this girl are still happily married and very much in love!

Happy 44th Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

Thank you for being the best parents and friends a girl could ask for and for being my love role models.  

There's a place for us
A time and place for us
Hold my hand and we're halfway there
Hold my hand and I'll take you there
Somehow
Some day
Somewhere

 

Reflections of 2015

As the end of 2015 is quickly approaching, I am sitting back with a cup of hot tea and reflecting on what's occurred over the last 365 days. It's easy to lose track of our blessings on a daily basis. Life happens. Sometimes life throws you curveballs. Sometimes life is a downright nightmare. However, it's important to always seek out the good and positive in life regardless of what you may be facing.

Today, my dad endured yet another round of chemo. He dreads it. Mom and I do as well. I hate chemo day. Not just for the obvious reasons but because once chemo day is over then I know I "lose" my dad for about eight days. I feel more helpless than usual. I am the fixer. I hate when I can't fix things. The good news is that on the eighth day after chemo, Dad miraculously starts slowly feeling better and turning back into my dad. That is until the next round. We're lucky that Dad has almost two weeks of good days. We're lucky that Dad has any good days at all. I try to reinforce that thought but during those eight days it's really difficult for Dad to be positive... and understandably so. I don't know how he does it - I'm not so sure I could.

It would be easy to sit back right now and be angry, to be resentful and to ask the simple question of "why". In fact, I do that quite often. However, it doesn't get me anywhere. Nothing changes as a result of screaming at God. Things do change though when I delve into my faith and believe that everything happens for a reason. We may not understand the reason right now but one day we will. We always do.

While I'm reflecting on 2015, the one thing that I tend to focus on is where Dad was this time last year. It was a completely different place and not a good one. He would say that right now isn't a good place to be either and I understand that but hear me out.  I tend to feel better when I put things into perspective.  This time last year, it was a nightmare. He's come so far in a year.

In December 2014 Dad was in tremendous pain. No warning. No explanation. He had severe pain in his hip, his back and his ribs. He had to walk with a cane. He had to take oxycodone every three hours, 24/7, and it still didn't take away the pain. When the bump on the back of his head appeared it just about smacked me in the face. Long story short, I feared the worst.  When prostate cancer spreads, it is known for spreading to the bone. The pain Dad was having was all surrounding bony structures. I didn't say anything out loud but inside I was screaming at the top of my lungs. The thing we had dreaded the last 20 years was coming true. Dad's cancer was back and it had metastasized to the bone. That's exactly what the bone scan showed. For once, I wished I was wrong. 

The other thing Dad had always dreaded in his almost 20 year journey to annihilate cancer was that he'd have to endure chemo. In February 2015, Dad started chemo. All of a sudden, chemo wasn't the devil anymore. Why? Because chemo was the only option left. Chemo would hopefully save Dad's life.

When Dad started chemo his PSA was at 101. When he was first diagnosed with prostate cancer it was in the high 20s. Anything over a 2 or 3 is dangerous so you can understand our fear. After taking a huge decline in the beginning and continuing to decline throughout the year, the PSA has recently slowed down and is starting to plateau. His latest PSA is at 13. Sure it's not 0. But it's also not 101.

In a matter of a year, Dad has had to endure poison coursing through his entire body.... on purpose. It sucks. No, it is absolutely devastating. But you know what? That poison is working.  His hair may be gone but the visible tumor on his skull is also gone. The neuropathy in his legs, feet, arms and hands may be unbearable and worsening but that's a result of the chemo; not the cancer. His fatigue and weakness is debilitating at times but he has the ability to rest and that's what his body needs in order to recover. He has an incredible wife who is serving as his 24/7 caregiver. Many people in Dad's condition (or worse) do not have such a loving person by their side. The unbearable pain caused by the cancer is gone. All of the pain that the cancer was causing this time last year is nonexistent. Chemo is working!

As I reflect on the past year and I think about all that my dad (and my mom) have been through in Dad's journey to kick prostate cancer's ass yet again, I feel so blessed. Really, you ask?  How can I feel blessed if my dad's cancer has come back for the fifth time and it's worse than ever?  I am thankful for my dad's oncologist and his team of nurses. I am thankful for my mother and her undying devotion to my dad. I am thankful for my dad's strength and faith even when it could be so very easy for him to give up. I am thankful for our friends and family who pray for him on a daily basis. I am thankful for Denny's Shotgun Riders. I am thankful to my non-profit support system and new family, ZERO.

Chemo is a bitch and why we don't have a cure for cancer by now is incomprehensible to me. Why we have to resort to pumping poison into someone's body causing them to become sicker makes no sense to me. But ironically, I am thankful for that poison. Why? The absolute truth is that without chemo my dad wouldn't be here right now.

As you're thinking about what's happened in 2015 and what your possible resolutions and goals are for 2016, take a moment and consider what your blessings are. I bet you don't even realize how fortunate you really are in this life. If you need some reassurance or a reality check, hit me up. I'll be happy to help.

Be safe on New Year's Eve and be thankful. Take it from my parents and me, your life can change in an instant. May God bless you all with a loving, happy and healthy 2016. Thank you all for keeping my parents in your prayers. It truly means more than know.

What if your blessings come through raindrops
What if your healing comes through tears
What if the thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you're near
What if the trials of this life are your mercies in disguise

- Laura Story

The most precious gift of all

I don't have all that I want in this life but I have more than I need and I am so very grateful.  I have a roof over my head. I have a new car that keeps me safe on the road. I have food in my kitchen. I have clothes and shoes in my closet. I have a job that pays the bills and allows me to live pretty comfortably. I have a boss who not only appreciates me but who I am blessed to call my friend. I have my health. I have incredible parents who love me. I have the ultimate protector as my "son". I have a man who is deserving of my love and accepts me for who I am. I have a ton of friends and even more importantly, I have a handful of friends who mean enough to me to consider them family (more than most people with which I even share a bloodline).


I lost my grandmother, my ultimate source of lifelong unconditional love, two years ago. She was my best friend, my biggest fan, my sounding board, my partner in crime. I wanted for nothing when she was in my world and even when I didn't know I needed something she instantly provided it. I have so many tangible memories around my home that she provided to me over almost 40 years. However, meaning more to me than those items, is the time that we spent together. She wasn't a grandmother that I just saw on holidays and maybe a few times a year. She was a grandmother that I spent time with weekly and sometimes even daily when we lived five miles apart. We spent vacations together and every summer weekend together when I was a child.  While she did nothing short of spoiling me rotten and showering me gifts all year through, nothing could ever compare to the time that we spent together. The moments we shared - that's what meant the most to me and to this day I am so appreciative.

I lost my grandfather when I was 11 years old and while I often wonder how different my life would be had he been in it for a longer period of time, I know that my life was filled with abundant love and he had such an influence on who I would become. I received more love in those 11 years than some people do in a lifetime. While I still have many mementos from our time together, I cherish our moments together more than anything. If I could only be half as good of a person as he was, I'd be satisfied. He never met a stranger and was singing all the time. I like to think that I got my love of food and cooking from him. I always remember during the holidays when he dressed up like Santa Claus and came to my elementary school. He was the best Santa we'd ever seen and I felt like the luckiest girl alive because he was my Santa every day of the year; not just at Christmas. As a little girl, I would wake up Christmas morning to the sound of my grandfather,"Yoo hoo, Miss Bloo-hoo" and would jump out of bed and rush down the stairs into his arms. I had no idea until I was older that he and my grandmother would always come the night before. I also learned that he and Dad always enjoyed eating the cookies I left for Santa (washed down with a bourbon and water, of course).

I love making memories. I love taking photographs and capturing moments in time. I can look at a photograph and remember exactly how I felt at that exact moment no matter how long ago the photo was taken. Friends may get tired of me photographing everything in sight but they'll thank me one day.

As time goes on, I've found it's harder to get gifts that will be a surprise to my parents. I'm sure they feel the same about me. We tend to get whatever we want when we want it. There's nothing I "want" or "need" this year for Christmas. All I want is be with them. All I want is for them to be healthy and happy and to spend time with them - precious time with them. I want to enjoy delicious meals that we make together. I want to enjoy delicious wine that I have saved to share for a special occasion such as this one. I want to listen to music. I want to laugh. I want to smile. I want to just be. I want to just be happy with my people. I want to feel peace and joy and embrace the moment. Every single moment.

Hold your people tight. 

Times goes by so very fast.

 It feels like it was just yesterday that I was being held in my dad's arms as he had his arm around my mom and we stood in front of the Christmas tree at my grandparents house in Alexandria.

Of all the gifts I've been given over the years and for all the gifts that I may receive in the future, the gift of time is the most precious gift of all.

Merry Christmas!

Remember the real reason for the season and embrace every moment. You never know when that moment will turn into a special memory that you treasure for the rest of your life.

She makes him feel like Christmas.....

but to her, he is the epitome of all that IS Christmas. "They say from the instant he lays eyes on her, a father adores his daughter. Whoever she grows up to be, she is always to him that little girl in pigtails. She makes him feel like Christmas. In exchange, he makes a secret promise not to see the awkwardness of her teenage years, the mistakes she makes or the secrets she keeps." ' The first true love any girl has is her father. No one will ever replace him as the love of her life. At this time of year, I felt the need to just post pictures of my wonderful dad and me. My father has always loved Christmas and it is because of him and my grandfather, Carlton, that I, too, have loved Christmas my entire life. Last year was difficult as Dad was in tremendous pain and his cancer had just returned.  This year, while that pain is gone and the cancer is reaching its demise, Dad is in a state of exhaustion and weakness due to chemo. However, his spirit is still the same and it shines through and envelops all of us who are fortunate enough to know him. May that same spirit of strength, determination, will, hope, faith and love - the spirit of Christmas - also surround you and yours. Update: Dad's last PSA (in November) was at 11.7!! It's slowing down but it's still dropping. Please keep my father in your prayers. While the PSA is dropping, the chemo is harsher and its taking its toll physically on my father. Pray for strength and healing. Please also keep my mother in your prayers. The caregiver is often the silent hero and goes overlooked. She needs your love and support just as much as Dad does.

Inspiration from Sunshine

I was born with a burgundy and gold football in my hands. Ok, maybe not literally, but I was born with burgundy and gold flowing through my veins. At 42 years old, through the good times and the bad times, I have continued to be a diehard Redskins fan and I will be until the day that I die. I have my parents to thank for that and I am forever grateful.  Redskins football was a major part of my childhood and it has continued into adulthood. While I am a faithful Christian, I often joke that Redskins football is my church.  It’s the one way I can express to people how important of a tradition it is to me and my family. Everyone who knows me knows that I’ll be at the game or in front of the tv on Sundays (and the occasional Monday or Thursday night). If you want to see me or talk to me, you better be by my side. Otherwise, catch me another day.

There isn’t much that will take me away from watching a game. Even when I am out of town, I find a tv in that town that is showing the game. More than 15 years ago, I won a trip to San Francisco and remember having to find a place to watch the Skins that Sunday. Nothing like eating breakfast at a bar watching football on the West Coast all decked out in Skins gear.  

In recent years (decades even) my boys haven’t been as prominent of a force in the NFL and that’s when I embrace how lucky I am that I not only remember the good days but I remember the celebrations and the emotions of winning division championships and Super Bowls. I remember going out to Redskins Park at all hours of the night to welcome my team home. I remember the parades in DC . I remember RFK bleachers bouncing up and down. I remember chanting “We want Dallas”. I remember the Hogs, the best QB ever, Joe Theismann, and the best coach ever, Joe Gibbs.

I remember going to training camp in Carlisle, PA, when I was in middle school and being able to watch scrimmages, meet all of the players, get pictures and autographs. It wasn't like training camp now where there are specific days you are allowed to attend. I remember Gary Clark and Ricky Sanders running laps behind the bleachers and waving at me and Mom, and Ricky referring to my mom as “dear”. I remember going on the John Riggins Show. I remember meeting Joe Jacoby at the Old Dominion Boat Club and how excited my grandmother was to not even come up to that beast’s armpits.  I remember Darrell Green speaking at my church. While I’d like to forget the occasion, I also remember walking down the aisle to a slowed down, acoustic guitar version of “Hail to the Redskins” and the happy surprise on my dad’s face. I remember  when we draped a sign that said “Welcome to Redskins Territory” across the street from my parents top floor townhouse window to their best friends’ townhouse window so that anyone who came down the street would see it.  There are so many glorious memories that I could go on for days.

I remember crossing everything we had and wearing the same clothes, sitting in the same seats and eating the same foods during games. Why? Because we obviously played an integral part in winning those games! When we didn’t do those things and the Skins started losing, we would quickly fix it and guess what? They’d win! Yep, my family is powerful.

Most of all, I remember the class and the respect that my Skins not only displayed but demanded. The NFL has changed since the 80s and the 90s. The caliber of players, the intent of players, the heart of players , the way the game is played, the rules, and even the character of players in the NFL has changed. 

However, two years ago, I happened to meet a very genuine and kind-hearted man the Skins drafted as pick seven in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL draft.  I didn’t know anything about him except that a friend of mine who grew up in Michigan (and really knows college football) had told me that this former Michigan State Spartan QB was going to be one of the best things that ever happened to my team. While everyone, including myself, was excited about our first round draft pick, RGIII, and didn’t know why we would draft another QB in the same draft, I keep remembering to this day, being told it was one of the smartest things the Skins did. It wasn’t long after that we realized my friend was right. While RGIII had a phenomenal rookie year and then succumbed to injuries and his ultimate demise (at the hand of a bad coaching staff) it was then that I remembered that blond-haired blue-eyed Midwesterner we had sitting on the bench.

This season Captain Kirk...Sunshine.... Kirk Cousins, was named my team’s starting quarterback. He has a lot to learn but with each game he plays he improves and it’s evident. He’s only going to get better. From the moment that I met this man two years ago and was able to sense his generosity and pure kindness, I knew he was special. There isn’t a pretentious bone in his body. Perhaps growing up as a preacher’s son is the reason.  He strives to be the best he can be - for himself and his team.

Two Sundays ago, I was fortunate enough to attend the comeback game against Tampa Bay with my mom. The first half was dreadful and when the supposed fans started chanting “RGIII” I was disgusted. Evidently, I wasn’t the only one disgusted because the next drive “Sunshine” shut them up and went on a rout that would give us the biggest comeback in the team’s history. It pissed him off just as it did me. Yet, most importantly, it motivated him.

Yesterday, my favorite guy and I were at the game and Kirk had the best game of his life. As a Redskins fan as well as a Kirk Cousins fan, I couldn’t have been much happier. I never get tired of singing the fight song, and with four touchdowns I sang it a lot yesterday. (After all they do say "Fight for Val-er-ie" in the song, ya know.) Nothing irritates me as much as opposing team fans in MY stadium and when they are actually louder than Skins fans.  So when my Skins started to massacre the Saints, this tiny little diehard was louder than anyone thought was possible and with good reason!

After yesterday’s 47-14 win, with an almost non-existent voice, and a permanent grin on my face, my only wish that was my dad would have been there to witness this extraordinary win. What made it even sweeter is that after the game I found out what my dear Sunshine had done and it not only renewed my faith in today's players but it connected me even more to Kirk Cousins in a way that I was not aware of until yesterday.

In September, when Kirk started his first full season as the Redskins starting QB, his dad was diagnosed with metastatic squamous cell carcinoma. Don Cousins is a pastor at a church in Orlando and had been unable to travel due to his cancer treatment until yesterday’s game. How ironic that the first time he was able to watch his son in person happened to be the greatest game of his professional career. Kirk threw for 324 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions and was 20 of 25 in completions.

Being the class act that he is, after the game, Kirk greeted the opposing team’s quarterback with a game ball under his arm and then Kirk immediately delivered the game ball to his dad who was in the stands! Kirk was excited to have him at the game but even more so to have him witness such a fantastic win! When he gave his dad the game ball, his dad thanked him for a great day. Kirk was thrilled to see his dad with a smile on his face and it became a very special day for his family.

There's no other person in this world that is a bigger Skins fan than my dad. He's never turned his back on them - no matter what version of our team shows up on game day. He always has faith in his team and he's talked me off the ledge about giving up on them many times.  There's only one thing that would stop him from going to the game and sitting in his seat with my mom at Fed Ex Field and unfortunately, that's this son of a bitch called prostate cancer.

I have a huge responsibility when I am at these games – not just to my team as a fan but as a daughter. My dad hasn’t been able to attend a game in over a year.  For a man who has been going to games for over 30 years, and the one who instilled the love of Redskins in his daughter, I am aware of the enormity of the shoes I have to fill when I am sitting in my dad's seat.

This photo made me emotional. This story made me emotional.

Kirk Cousins IS that standup, lo key, genuine, good-hearted, silent hero kind of man that I thought he was when I met him (and when no one else in the room even knew who he was but me). It was with this quote, that it really hit home because I realized for the first time, that Kirk and I had more than just our love of football in common.  We also had a commonality of love for our dads and strong faith in our God.

“It’s been kind of tough,” Cousins said of playing football through his dad’s battle, “but it’s part of life and you just kind of work through it and trust God’s plan.”

God Bless our fathers and their battles with cancer.

Thank you, Sunshine, for not only being a genuine human being, but an incredible role model, and thank you for instilling such incredible inspiration in me!

****

Next chemo is Thursday, November 19.

Keep the prayers coming, please!

Remember: It's a marathon; not a sprint

It's October. October is my favorite month of the year. The warm days and cool nights, the crispness in the air, hay rides and pumpkins and the beautiful colors of the changing leaves. If only it would stay October forever but all good things must come to an end.

In the same way that I love October and don't want it to end, my father hates chemo and is ready for it to end. In fact, my mother and I are also ready for it to end. We're ready for the neuropathy in his feet and legs to end. We're ready for the loss of his hair to end. We're ready for the flavor of all food as cardboard (for a week after chemo) to end. We're ready for the extreme fatigue and weakness to end. We're ready for the feeling of not being able to do anything that he used to be able to do with such ease to end.

What we're not ready to have end though, is the PSA decreasing! Yes, friends, through all of the discomfort, frustration, exhaustion and misery, the PSA is still decreasing which means we're winning this battle against prostate cancer.

Two treatments ago, Dad's oncologist reduced the amount of chemo by 20% to help reduce the duration of the harmful physical effects of chemo that Dad was experiencing. It was to help Dad bounce back quicker after chemo and it worked!  The first PSA after having the chemo reduction still showed a decrease but it didn't drop as much as we had hoped. It was a bit demoralizing until we realized that we shouldn't be looking at points necessarily but by the percentage trend. Some PSA results only reflect one chemo treatment while others reduce two to three depending on how the three-week chemo intervals fall. The bottom line is the PSA is still decreasing and Dad's "bounce back time" is back to one week versus two weeks putting quality of life at the forefront! We are succeeding!!

This is not easy. In fact, this is pure hell. It is pure hell, obviously, for my father because he is having to endure it. It is pure hell for my mother because she is the silent caregiver who wants to fix things for the love of her life and there's only so much she can do. It is pure hell for me seeing my father suffer for a week and a day after chemo and trying to quit asking why.

We all want this to end for him. But we will continue to do what we are doing because it is working. In February his PSA was 101. The last PSA he had in September was 12.7. The goal is obviously 0. There is no doubt in my mind that we will get there. We are closer to 0 now than we have been in almost a year when this bastard reared its ugly head again in the winter of 2014.

But we have to remember that this does not happen on our terms.
We need to be grateful for every step.
We take all victories.
This battle with prostate cancer is a marathon; not a sprint.

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

I don't talk about work much because once those 7.5 hours (and sometimes longer) of my day are over, I do my best to put it aside and forget about it until the next day arrives. However, I need to talk for just a moment about what I do for a living as it relates to prostate cancer.

I am the Chief Deputy Clerk to the Prince William Board of County Supervisors. You can call me "Chief". Just kidding. It sounds fancy but it's really not. Basically, the Clerk, my boss, and I run the County's elected board's legislative sessions which are usually held three times a month.  Most meetings have a Consent Agenda which include proclamations and commendations to be approved by the Board and they must be introduced by a Board member. I've been working in this position for over five years and recently realized when I was preparing the agenda for the September 8 Board meeting that prostate cancer has never been addressed. Just about every other cancer has been acknowledged but not the one that is most important to me.

This year, I'm very proud and pleased to say that Coles Magisterial District Supervisor Marty Nohe brought forth a resolution to proclaim September 2015 as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in Prince William County!

At its Tuesday, September 8, 2015 afternoon legislative session, the Board of County Supervisors approved the resolution. I am thrilled to say that my friend, partner in crime on the Let's Talk Live segment, and Vice President of Marketing and Communications for ZERO, Colony Brown, proudly accepted the proclamation and spoke publicly at the Board meeting.

Click the link below to see the video clip.
(Be patient. There's some lead time.)

http://pwcgov.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=23&clip_id=2020&meta_id=46753

 

Not only was I honored to have Colony there but my parents were also in attendance for the proclamation presentation.

 

 

Proclaim – September 2015 – Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
 

WHEREAS, prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among American men and is the most commonly diagnosed; affecting one in seven men; and
 

WHEREAS, it is estimated that 220,800 men will be diagnosed in 2015. Currently, there are nearly 2.8 million American men living with the prostate cancer; roughly equal to the population of Chicago; and
 

WHEREAS, in 2015, 6,120 new prostate cancer cases and 670 deaths are projected for Virginia; both rates being higher than the projected U.S. average; and
 

WHEREAS, all men are at risk of developing prostate cancer but that risk increases significantly with age.  About one in 304 men younger than 49 years will be diagnosed. One in 44 men ages 50 to 59; one in 16 men ages 60 to 69; and one in nine men ages 70 and over will be diagnosed with prostate cancer; and
 

WHEREAS, it is recommended men should start discussing prostate cancer risk and testing options with their doctor in their 40s, earlier if they have additional risk factors which include family history, ethnicity, diet and exposure to defoliants such as Agent Orange; and
 

WHEREAS, 94% of men learn their diagnosis from an early detection test; and
 

WHEREAS, in addition to the importance of early detection, non-profit organizations at the forefront of this disease, such as ZERO-The End of Prostate Cancer, are crucial in leading the fight to end prostate cancer by advancing research, encouraging action, and providing education and direct support to men and their families;
 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Prince William Board of County Supervisors does hereby proclaim September 2015 as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month and urges all citizens to educate themselves on the importance of early detection and to show their support in finding a cure for prostate cancer during the month of September and throughout the year.

BOARD OF COUNTY SUPERVISORS

_________________________________

Corey A. Stewart

Chairman

Some may say proclamations at the local level are a dime a dozen but it's about awareness to me. To my knowledge, Prince William County has never proclaimed September as Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. As I said from the beginning, this isn't about me. This is about my dad and all the other men who are battling this disease, are survivors, who have succumbed to this disease and who haven't even been diagnosed yet.

If I can be a part of bringing awareness, even a small little part, then I will gladly climb up on that pedestal and shout from the rooftops. Or in this case, I'll create the masterpiece behind the scenes and let someone else take all the credit.  Makes no difference to me because it's all about awareness and getting people educated and informed!

The number of men who should have to suffer from

prostate cancer?

ZERO.

 

There's no better time for you to help!

The 2015 annual campaign is still occurring and we're on the downward stretch toward the end of the year. Don't you need some tax write-offs? Wouldn't you like to make a donation to an incredible

non-profit? I have the best one right here.

 

Click the link below to easily make an online donation to ZERO and help men like my dad who have been battling this wretched disease for almost 20 years.

 

http://www.zeroprostatecancerrun.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1127720&lis=1&kntae1127720=303A3D9EFCCF4A9D9C4D9D860DB25C72&supId=417434731&_ga=1.211285264.429039745.1441817379

 

We thank you.