Hello everyone. I have another guest blogger. She is my friend and teammate, Renee.
Her mother, Angie, is the other lady that TEAM KNAUP walks in memory of. Renee was 2 years old when her mother passed away from LUPUS.
Please read what Renee has to say and help her reach her fundraising goal.
Click HERE to donate.
Here's Renee:
If I could tell you a story it would definitely be happy. I would tell you that I had a loving mother, a wonderful father, and an awesome brother. I would tell you that we were happy, we lived peacefully, and that we always had each other. But this story is just that - a story. I always let my imagination flow freely. When I was in a bad situation I would let my imagination take me to a place that was happy, peaceful, and serene. Although life should be happy it not always is.
My mother was a breath of fresh air. She was smart, beautiful, and loving. All she wanted out of life was her own family that she could love and take care of. God gave her a husband and two children, however Lupus decided that her life would be shortened.
My mother became pregnant with my brother when she was a junior in high school. My brother, Ryan, was born on October 30, 1977. She was a dedicated student and was honored as Valedictorian of her Senior Class. She graduated in 1978. In her Senior Class yearbook her classmates predicted that she would have 5 children. They even saw her as a wonderful mother figure.
Ryan and I blowing out our candles. This would be our LAST birthday with our Mom.
On November 7, 1979 I came along. My mother gave up continuing her education to be a mother. She worked part-time in the evenings as a waitress to help supplement my father’s income as a truck driver. We would spend the day with our mother and then once my father was home she would go to work to earn extra money to help the family. During the day she would take snapshots of us. She loved to take photos. She used construction paper and a type writer to make me and my brother our own baby scrapbook. This photo album meant the world to me because it is the only real proof of my family with my mother.
My mother became ill in December 1980. At Christmas, she had a sore along the outside of her lip that covered most of her mouth and nose. She began having nose bleeds and her feet were so swollen that she could barely get her shoes on her feet.
My grandmother recalls that we were all at their house and my mother was sitting in a chair, she said she was just sitting there, like she didn’t know where she was, and all the sudden her nose started bleeding. My dad tried to hurry up and get our coats on so we could get home. My grandmother recalls saying that night that they would be raising two children. The next day my mother was taken to the hospital. She was put on oxygen and was in a wheelchair. When my grandparents arrived they found her sitting smoking a cigarette. My mother didn’t smoke cigarettes. They were very concerned. She then had to be life-lined to Carle Clinic in Champaign, but there was a terrible snow storm and she had to be driven by ambulance in this blizzard. After arriving at Carle Clinic she was in a coma from that point and eventually coded. Nothing could be done to save my mother.
After her passing, it was determined that she had been suffering from Lupus Erythematosis for the past year and contracted an infection because her immune system was so weak. They estimated that she had the infection three months prior to her death. My mother died at the age of 22 on 2/2/82, leaving a 2 year old daughter and a 4 year old son, and a 25 year old husband.
My mother’s death caused a lot of pain and suffering to my family. Instead of making all of the family members closer it caused painful words, hurt, and anguish. There were two little children who needed support and love and many just couldn’t give it to them.
My brother and nephew.
I would like to say that if I could do anything to bring my mother back, I would do it. I know that I can’t, but I’d like to think that by helping others along with the Lupus Foundation of America that if I can just help one other person that I’ve done something to bring my mother back.
I want everyone to know that the world has challenges, obstacles, things that make you want to quit; but don’t quit. You need to keep living, you need to keep trying, and you need to keep working for what you want out of life. It may not be easy, but when you set a goal for yourself and you work hard to achieve it, it just proves that you can do anything.
I may never know what my mother’s laugh sounds like, or the touch of her skin, or her words of encouragement. But I try to imagine that they are in my heart and whenever I need them, they are right there. She may not be in my presence, but she is right here with me, in my heart.
Remind yourself the next time you want to do something, that you do it for a purpose, you do it for a reason, and you do it to help someone.
You can help by a simple donation.
Please visit my site at http://donate.lupus.org/goto/reneegreen
Please check out my video tribute:
No donation is too small. Each dollar brings us one step closer to finding a cure for a disease that took my mother away. Please, if you can, help me help those suffering from LUPUS.
Sincerely,
Renee
No comments:
Post a Comment