Hey everyone!
The tire issue hurt us early in the race at Texas. We’ve got one more shot at Phoenix to keep the #22 in the running for the Sprint Cup Championship!
This Week’s Cause: Cancer Awareness
Our Chasing Second Chances program will again focus this week on an organization helping families get through the life altering diagnosis of cancer. For the last blog post, I talked about perspective and the battle with cancer. For this post, I wanted to discuss some of the things we as the community can do to help families and individuals as they are facing this challenge.
“There’s nothing more lonely in this world then getting that diagnosis”
-Singleton Moms Recipient
I have seen this before with family and friends battling cancer. There is a fight to carry on with everyday life as they struggle with the diagnosis. Even with friends and family around, they can still feel isolated; like they are dealing with cancer on their own.
There are ways that we as a community can help these individuals and families to let them know they are not alone. It can sometimes be hard to know exactly what a person or family may need, but it shouldn’t stop us from trying to help. For many cancer patients, the acts of cooking, cleaning a house, getting kids to practice, or going to work can become overwhelming. Just offering to go grocery shopping or bringing a hot meal to the person or family can make a world of difference. If by helping you can make one evening more enjoyable or less painful, it is well worth it.
I encourage you to look into organizations providing services to cancer patients. Many times you can find non-profits in the community that offer volunteer opportunities. Many churches offer volunteer programs too or maybe you just start a meal chain for a neighbor you know has been diagnosed. Whatever way you choose to find an opportunity, you may change a person’s life through one simple act of kindness.
This Week’s Joey Logano Foundation Chasing Second Chances Partner
Singleton Moms is a small, Arizona-based non-profit with a mighty vision. They are dedicated to nurturing single parents battling cancer and their minor children. They do this by meeting the practical day-to-day needs of the entire family, while providing hope for tomorrow.
The organization uses donor support and volunteers to reach their clients.
The following details who they support.
- In 2009, 17,000 single parents were living with a cancer diagnosis in Arizona (source)
- Singleton Families have an average of 2.7 children living in the home
- 70% of the parents they serve have been diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer
- The average age of the parent they support is 36 years old
- The annual cost to support a family of four is $10,200
- In 2013, Singleton Moms provided over 2,160 meals or 8,640 portions to Singleton Families. This means that on any day of the year at least 23 people are enjoying a nutritious family meal provided by Singleton Moms.
We were really excited to find out the organization’s founder, Jody Farley-Berens, has been nominated as a finalist for the annual CNN Heroes award.
This award honors remarkable individuals and their non-profits helping communities all over the world. Congratulations to Jody and her team!