Giving Back….

Saturday night my daughter and I attended the 10th Annual Founders Gala for Kids Konnected. It was held at the Marconi Automotive Museum in Tustin, CA.

I wanted to give back to this organization that helped us so much throughout my cancer experience and continues to help us emotionally move forward. I created this original collage that I felt was significant to Kids Konnected and the children they assist.

The director of the organization used the piece in the live auction and asked if I would be willing to go up prior and say a few words about our experience with Kids Konnected and my collage. My daughter and I went up before the audience and this is a summary of what I said… “Two years ago today I was in surgery undergoing a bilateral mastectomy with immediate reconstruction, before the surgery I underwent 4 months of chemotherapy and during that time is when we found Kids Konnected. Kids Konnected has helped us emotionally move through this horrible disease. Even as I got well my daughter wanted to stay involved, she became a teen leader and continues to help other children navigate through this maze. This painting was created to express how even though a child may lose a parent to cancer that parent will always stay in their heart… their Mom or Dad rises up to heaven and becomes the angel watching over them. Even though my prognosis is good, I know that if I hear those dreadful words again (you have cancer), our Kids Konnected family will be there to help my children.”

The bidding started at $300.00 (the cost to send a kid to camp), the bidding worked it’s way up to $1000.00. The gentleman bidding then added, “I pledge $1000.00 annually”. He said he would honor his pledge and we could rebid the painting. They started the bidding again and another gentleman matched the $1000.00 annually. I am not sure if it was the collage, my speech or the visual of my daughter and I standing there together and people really seeing what their money can do…. but the details really do not matter. Six kids will get to go to camp each year, every year and that is what truly matters.

cross posted at marybethvolpini