The spirit of giving

So, ya know when you are posting something on your blog, or telling some one something, that there is a certain caution, or insecurity, or a line that could be crossed? Like- "I really want to tell people about this, but I don't want to sound like I'm bragging.?" or "Hey-look how great we are!" Well, I have one of those stories. I'm so excited and I just want to share it. So keep that in mind...



This year has been a very magical Christmas season for my family. After Thanksgiving Lewis's parents, Larry and Jo, gave each of their kids an envelope. Inside there was a letter and $100 in cash. The letter explained what to do with the 100 bucks. Here is a summation- Five years ago our family celebrated Lewis's 5th anniversary of being cancer free! To celebrate we did not give each other gifts, but we donated the money we would have spent and gave it to the Huntsman Cancer Institute. It was so much fun and a memorable experience for all of us. This year it was Lewis's 10 year anniversary of being cancer free. So each family was given $100 to give to someone else. The only rules were that it could not be a family member or friend. Then on the 21st we would have our family party and everyone could share their story.

What a GREAT idea! Immediately Lewis and I begin crying. If you know either of us very well, you know that we have a talent for crying. It's embarrassing most of the time, but we can't control it. At this point in our lives we are struggling in the financial area. Really, who isn't, right? When you put things in perspective, and have the opportunity to give, your own situation does not seem so bleak. Lew and I then began to brain storm. I was leaning towards something with dogs (No more homeless pets), or wouldn't it be fun to give a single mom who is a waitress a tip of $100! Oh the possibilities!

Lewis thought of the winning idea. Since it is his 10 year anniversary, we should do something cancer related. So he decided to find a student that was working on cancer research. He wanted someone that was raising a family, like us. Lew found a professor that could steer us in the right direction and here is the letter that we received-

Lewis-the generosity and thoughtfulness shown by you and your family is remarkable and inspiring. I would consider selecting a graduate student in the department of Oncological Sciences (housed in the Huntsman Cancer Institute). Your doctor, Dr. Glenn, was a research fellow with the Chairman of this department (Barbara Graves Ph.D) - and this is also my home department. I would suggest a student who has a result of considerable significance, with relevance to the broad area of cancer biology, and also has a young family. Our graduate students are paid a living wage and have basic benefits via our grant support, but most students with families live quite modestly if they are relying solely on this income source - I'm sure a little extra would be greatly appreciated. I have one student who fits this perfectly - ****** ***** - he has two separate research projects which have both been very successful. One project is now in review at a major scientific journal and the other study is mostly written. He will be here perhaps 6 months to one year to complete some follow up work. Both papers are on how cells control their rate of growth, a topic of clear relevance to cancer. My Chairman, Barbara Graves, is a co-author on the paper and can attest to its significance and ******'s talent. ******* and his wife have two young children and rely almost solely on his income. They are great people - so good that I have some concern that they will want to give the money to charity rather than spend it......

Thanks very much for your support of HCI and cancer research. - Brad Cairns


Lew and I were so excited about this family, that we told my mom about it and she gave us $100 to give them as well. On the date of delivery we went up to their apartment. We were very nervous. Some guy was walking up the side walk behind us so we had to pretend we were just checking out the area, in case it was the guy we were delivering to. We then found the right apartment. When the mom answered she was dressed in modest, simple clothes. We gave her the card and wished her a Merry Christmas. She probably just thought we were neighbors handing out cards. I then looked at Lew and he had picked up Zane and was running down the side walk. I grabbed Ruby and started running too. We threw the kids in the car and tore out of the parking lot. I really wanted to be a fly on the wall at the moment they opened the card. I hope they were surprised and that they were able to have a better Christmas.

The kids were not able to really get the spirit of giving by this donation. To help them understand better we also adopted an 8 year old girl off of the Angel tree. Ruby helped me pick out clothes and toys for her. She has been talking about it and I feel that she can realized a little bit better about the joy of helping others.
Our Christmas has had such a wonderful, magical feel to it. Last night we had our family party. Each little family shared their story about who they gave their money to. Each story was special in it's own way and different for every family. I'm so thankful that I had this opportunity to give and to feel the true spirit of Christmas. We have had a warm feeling in our home that I hope can happen every year. We are truly, truly blessed.