One of my online friends, Caroline O'Bannon, recently took her son Chase to the doctor because she was afraid that he might have been infected with Lyme Disease. The diagnosis: leukemia.
13-year-old Chase is currently undergoing treatment; his strong spirit and impish sense of humor are evident in the updates and photos that his mom has been sharing with us on Plurk and a CarePages site.
Caroline lives in Georgia. Another member of our PLN (Personal/professional Learning Network), Dan Gross, is a Boy Scout leader in Wisconsin. He has begun a project to collect shoulder patches for Chase, and his twin brother William, which is described in a Google Document. Since Chase will be unable to actively participate in scouting at this time, Dan is hoping to keep him connected with his peers through this activity.
Pictured above is the shoulder patch worn by scouts in my area of upstate New York. When I went to the local Boy Scout store and explained why I wanted the patches, the retired gentleman who volunteers there insisted on donating them and added an additional patch, commemorating the 2005 movie, Down and Derby. He said to tell Chase that an "old scout will be remembering you in his prayers."
Please consider joining this project. It is not a scam, just a community effort to show support for an incredible young teen.
3 comments:
Diane,
Thank you so much for the wonderful post about Chase! Now that a few patches have arrived, he has gotten extremely excited about the prospect of receiving others as well. He loves to collect things, and the patches definitely have a very special meaning to him since he's a Scout (Tenderfoot, hence the name of his carepage). I'm sure he'll be anxious to share them with the other members of his Troop.
His brother, William (also a Tenderfoot scout), was surprised that people were sending him patches, too. He's excited about them as well and they've both been amazed at the artistry of the designs.
I've been extremely touched by the outpouring of prayers and support from our shared PLN! I already knew it, but the members of our PLN are an incredibly selfless group of educators.
Thank YOU and everyone else who is praying for and keeping Chase's story close to your heart. Even he has been shocked by the number of messages he has received on his Carepage, but I think he's finally convinced that his mom is "connected" in the best of possible ways!
Thank you again and God Bless!
Caroline O'Bannon
I'm an Eagle scout, and if I can find my old uniform (and successfully remove a patch), I'll send one. The patch in your photo is a council patch - does he only want those, or will any patches do?
Caroline,
I enjoy reading your updates on Chase. His courage and sense of humor are extraordinary. He will conquer this!
Damian,
If you look at Dan's spreadsheet, you'll see that people are sending other types of patches. I believe Chase and his twin brother William are collecting and trading with other scouts.
I'm sure they'd appreciate anything you care to send.
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