Weekend Update

This weekend, we went live with our fundraising, seeking to raise $750,000 in Kim’s memory to help pay for two new PET/CT Scanners for the new BC Cancer Centre coming to Cloverdale. These machines will be the first of their kind in the Fraser Valley.
 
On Saturday night, Carrie and I held a small gathering in our home to help launch the event, but more importantly, to spend some time as a family and a couple of close friends remembering Kim. There was a lot of laughter and joy at the event, as many of us had not seen each other in a long time, but of course, there were also many tears.
 
One comment was made that I had not thought of, but which was very true. Kim, as I have blogged about before, loved to bring people together–she loved to have fun with people. The comment was made that if Kim could see all this that we as a community are doing, the way we are coming together in her memory to do something incredibly important and practical (raising funds for these machines) she would be so proud and happy that it was happening.
 
We sincerely hope that through this fundraiser, all of you who have donated or are considering donating will feel that you are part of something bigger than just yourself. Together, we are a community, brought together at this time in memory of Kim, doing something we would not have been able to do on our own, to make a meaningful, life-changing impact in the lives of thousands of people through these machines.
 
For those who have donated already, THANK YOU! In the coming days, if you check back on the fundraising website, you will see your gift triple in size as those matching funds get unlocked and released.
 
If you are considering giving but would like more information or have an idea you’d like to talk about, please go to the contact form on this website to get in touch with me. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have or to talk about any further impact you’d like to help organize.
 
Later this week, I hope to publish a couple of posts about Kim’s experience with PET/CT Scanners. Kim had five scans throughout her five-year journey with cancer, four of them in Vancouver, but for one, she was sent down to Bellingham because the wait times for these limited machines were too long to wait for. Check back in a day or two to read more about how important these machines are and the impact they made on Kim's treatment.