Pimpin' the cause

Those of you on Facebook may have seen me beg you to vote for the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation in the Chase Community Giving contest over the last week. Big, big thanks to those of you who have voted already. You rock.

For the rest of you:

The contest (pitting lots of very deserving charities against other very deserving charities to win $1 million for their cause) ends tomorrow, January 22nd. I wanted to ask you one final time if you'd take a teeny, tiny moment from your day (seriously, it takes less than a minute) to support the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation in its quest to cure Spinal Muscular Atrophy, or SMA.

SMA is the most common genetic killer of babies -- which sounds melodramatic, but it's true: 1 in 40 people is a carrier. SMA leaves its sufferers with little to no muscle tone; they can't do normal things like sit or stand unassisted, but more importantly they can't even cough. A simple cold can be (and sadly, often is) deadly because they can't clear their lungs. 50% of babies with SMA die before their second birthday, most often as a complication of respiratory illness.

It's a terrible, heartbreaking condition. One of my very good friends, Cass (she of Bahamas, Bahamas, Bahamas fame over there in my blog roll), has two children diagnosed with SMA, her twin babies Kyle and Lauren. Here they are:



Adorable, no?

This isn't just a vaguely good cause to me; it's personal. I've watched these kids grow. I saw Cass struggle for answers when they didn't hit any of the usual milestones -- rolling over, crawling, sitting -- and then struggle for answers of a different sort when hit with an actual diagnosis. I've seen how hard Cass fights to advocate for her children now. She, they, all the families affected by this condition, deserve a break.

SMA research is close to a viable treatment and/or cure. Tantalizingly close. Will it be in time for Kyle and Lauren? I hope so. A million dollars from Chase Community Giving would go a long way toward furthering that research and blessing the lives of these two and so many others.

The last time I checked, the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation was nowhere near first place, but don't let that deter you from contributing your single vote. Chase Community Giving will also give $100,000 to each of the five runners up (so that would be charities in 2nd through 6th place tomorrow when voting ends). $100,000 ain't a million, but it's definitely not nothing. Every little bit helps. Every vote counts.

You can make a difference without any real effort on your part -- just click a few links! Vote to cure SMA, and then spread the word loud and far. Please.



Thank you.


~RCH~