I Have A Dream (IHAD) here in Dallas continues to struggle after we made our difficult decision. But hopefully the community will rally around this worthy effort to diversify the donation base for the after school program. Believe me when I tell you, we know dollars are tight and the economic environment is hurting everyone. It's our hope this will only end up being a temporary decision on our part to pull back because the program and the kids have played such an important role in our lives over the past 15 years. The Dallas Morning News covered current efforts to raise donations and IHAD Dallas have launched a website to make it easier for the community to step up. Please take some time to check out both of the links. Thank you.
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1 Tough Decisions
I wanted to share with the tough decision we've had to make it's hitting the local news right now. As you know, the I Have A Dream Foundation (IHAD) here in Dallas is truly a remarkable program for so many children in need. We’ve been privileged to play a role in their efforts for nearly 15 years. In particular, we’ve been the sole financial provider of the after- school program, totaling well over a half-million dollars over more than six years. But because of rising costs — such as unprecedented spiraling employee health care costs — and our other financial commitments, we find ourselves having to temporarily suspend those efforts. Obviously, this has been a tough, difficult — and hopefully temporary — decision for us.
It’s our hope that the program will continue with help from the community as we continue to work hard toward being able to resume a financial commitment in the future. With help from the community hopefully the IHAD foundation's efforts will no longer be solely reliant on one individual which will make it healthier and stronger in the future. Please take a moment to learn more about this deserving program.
2 Revisting St. Baldrick’s
Research saves live! Those aren't my words they come directly from the St. Baldrick's foundation -- but those words are very true. Did you know that "each year, 160,000 children are diagnosed with cancer worldwide. Cancer is the number one disease killer of children in the U.S. and Canada." I bring this up because it was around this time a decade ago that a bunch of reinsurance executives were working to turn their annual St. Patrick's Day party into something bigger. It was the kickoff event for what eventually became the worldwide St. Baldrick's foundation. We've accomplished a lot since then but cancer has not gone away so our fight continues. St. Baldrick's and other organizations are doing tremendous things to raise resources and awareness. Let's keep up the fight.
1 Can a Virus Help Fight Cancer?
This is a really interesting story about a potential avenue of research that would help fight cancer. These researchers are testing whether using a harmless virus can be used in such a way to target and eliminate cancer cells in patients. This would be an amazing discovery that could go a long way in the fight against cancer. They are still in testing stages so the verdict is still out but something for all of us to watch.
0 News in the Fight Against Alzheimers
Researchers at UCLA may have found a way to predict the onset of Alzheimer's disease through "subtle changes in the brain's structure over time". Did you know that researchers estimate that over 10-percent of people over 65-years old will develop the disease? Sad. Our research has come a long way -- in the past decade alone we've learned more about the brain in all the previous years combined. But we have a long way to go. Detection is a step forward but it's only one step. Teresa and I are committed to doing what we can to help efforts to find a cure.
