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.
