Continued from the Toronto Dear Jack Foundation Light the Night team's Facebook post:
In just four years this tiny team of ours has raised over $25,000 for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada, and I couldn't be more proud of all the hard work each and every one of us has put into this cause. Thank you, to every single person who has volunteered, donated, spread the word, or just offered us support throughout these four years. They've been more than I could have ever asked for.
When I started this team I was lost. I was a recent college graduate and a new mum, but feeling unsettled in my position in life. I was heading off to work and sending my baby to be taken care of by a stranger, and that weighed heavily on my heart. I was young, and sad about these circumstances, and feeling like something was missing. It didn't take me long to realize what that something was. This team has been the glue that has held my mental and emotional well-being together, in times when I felt I wasn't worth anything. Being able to put my problems aside and help others in a real, big way, has been so life-changing that I can't even begin to put it into words. The support I received from friends and family, and all of the Andrew McMahon (or AM) fam I connected with throughout these fundraising years was nothing short of incredible, and I know that I am a better person for it. My heart feels whole now.
Last fall I had a lengthly conversation with Andrew, brainstorming my next steps in terms of working with the Dear Jack Foundation (who have made incredible leaps in their organization this year) and how I could best serve the cancer community. We quickly came up with a few tiny sparks - ideas that were not yet fully formed, but somewhere just waiting to be realized. It was after this day that I knew I was meant for more. I launched MFEO Matches at the beginning of this year, with a ton of help from the amazing people at DJF, and although it got off to a slow start, I knew almost immediately that this would be a turning point in my philanthropic career. I knew that at some point in the future something was going to have to give to make this organization the success I knew it could be.
And so, with a full heart, it is time that I announce the retirement of the Toronto Dear Jack Foundation Light the Night team at the end of the 2016 fundraising year. With an incredible team number of $25K, I feel like now is the right time, and I am oddly not as sad as I thought I would be. I need to put all my energy into MFEO Matches starting January 1, 2017 - one year from the organization's official launch, and see where this next journey takes me.
So what does that mean for our team? For starters, we need to raise another $330 before our walk on October 19th to hit our team goal of $8000, and I need to raise at least $125 of that to make my personal goal as well! I would LOVE to see us hit $10,000 by December 31st - that would be an incredible milestone to end our team on, don't you think? And I bet you can all help make it happen. If you can find it in your hearts to donate to this team one last time and help me end it with a bang, I would be forever grateful. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for every ounce and penny of support over the last four years. I love you all. Please continue to support Light the Night and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada if it is in your hearts - I can recommend other teams you can give to, or help you set up your own. They are doing incredible things and inching us closer to ending blood cancer every day. Their cause is extremely important, and I am so glad that with your help, this team contributed what we could to that fight.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Labels: Andrew McMahon, blood cancers, Cancer, cancer research, charity, cure, Dear Jack Foundation, DJF, fundraising, Leukemia, Light The Night, LLSC, Lymphoma, MFEO Matches, philanthropy, Toronto
