Will You Join The Fight?

2 More Days left until the LIGHT The NIGHT

Will you be joining us?

Come on out tonight for yummy food, great people, and good times.

TEAM GRIFFIN'S KICK OFF PARTY

Thursday September 23, 2010

HOULIHAN'S RESTAURANT
550 W. Touhy
Park Ridge, IL
847.692.6505

6PM-9PM

There will be free appetizers for our bunch

20% of dinner receipts will be donated to TEAM GRIFFIN

Fundraising continues with T-Shirt sales...get them while they are hot!

Come on out and meet GODZILLA he is hungry for your donations.

Raffle prizes a plenty.

Catch Griffin and his family here and the first round of Root Beer is on me!

Make a donation and find Godzilla at the event or link to TEAM GRIFFIN



(GODZILLA creation c/o Wayne Rizal-president CALAMBA ASSOCIATION of ILLINOIS)




The Maks family house is brimming with last minute details for the walk coming up this Saturday. Gretchen and Jon continue their efforts to raise funds for the walk as well as quell any tantrums inevitable among the Maks siblings.

Last night Griffin busy playing hide-n-seek with his cousins and made out to be a very good hider and seeker.

Want to find out more about this little dude?

Meet him tonight and JOIN the Fight!

See you there!

2010 Light the Night Walk *Team Griffin*

I remember the day when I was a kid playing endlessly at the park, climbing the monkey bars, spinning in the tire swing, and jumping on the teeter-totter. I played until the park lights started to flicker on and the setting sun cast it's last rays.







Over the weekend, Griffin (my 4 year old nephew), took a break from playing in the park to capture a few smiling images. We had walked a few steps around the jungle gym to find a spot for him to show off his cheeky smile and he said to me,

"I can't walk far because my legs hurt."

I proceeded to find out more about the discomfort that afflicted Griffin, and asked him my cadre of questions to find cause for his pain. Griffin answered my what, where, when, why, and how framework of questions. Griffin described his legs were hurting because he was playing in the park. He confirmed that he did not get bumped at the playground by his rambunctious siblings-Everest, Hudson, nor Kailey. He did not fall off the jungle gym, and he had not been play fighting Tai kwon do with his cousins (my rambunctious kids). Later on, my sister, Gretchen, told me the chemotherapy medication Griffin received made him tired and caused pain to his legs. Griffin left the park not too long after the images were taken and just prior to the debut of the evening sky making it's appearance.



I did not understand Griffin's pain because growing up as a kid I did not have the same experiences that Griffin has to endure. I have stopped asking myself the why about Griffin's Leukemia and find myself asking what can be done.
"What can I do to help my nephew not experience the physical pains after performing activities that children inevitably do growing up?"



On Saturday, September 25, 2010, Griffin and his family plan to attend The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS's) Light the Night Walk.





Joining TEAM GRIFFIN will be family and friends helping to raise funds for lifesaving cancer research. I join the fight to find a cure for Leukemia. A disease, in my opinion, that steals away the fundamental right of growing up as a child. I invite you to join Griffin.



Special mention who have and are still helping Griffin Maks and his family, including the Elizabeth Meyer School --Griffin's preschool. On behalf of Gretchen and Jon Maks: A huge Thank You for your efforts. We look forward to a good turnout in support of leukemia research!