Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I hope that the Holiday Season treated everyone well! Here at Camp Good Days, New Year’s Eve found us in Downtown Rochester, first at the Blue Cross Arena for the Rochester Razor Sharks home-opener. The Razor Sharks were kind enough to provide us with a table to sell kazoos to game attendees and to share some information about CANCER MISSION 2020. It was a great start to the season for the team as they started off with a victory. We also had tables set up at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center, as part of the City of Rochester’s New Year’s Eve Celebrations. It was a great event with a great crowd and a number of family-friendly events and activities. Joining us were Bill and Desi Benet, as they usually do. Bill’s father, Joe Benet, started the Kazoo Fest some 66 years ago just a few blocks from where we were, at Sibley’s. It is amazing to see this holiday tradition still going strong so many years later, and what a blessing that this event benefits the children and families at Camp Good Days. The evening concluded as Bill and I were invited to join Rochester Mayor, Tom Richards and City Council Member, Dana Miller, on the stage outside to lead the crowd in Auld Lang Syne on the kazoos, which was then followed by a beautiful fireworks show. Wendy and I then headed home and watched the ball drop on TV, her sipping on some champagne and me sipping my diet coke.

Overall, we had a phenomenal Holiday Season and a special thank you goes out to the thousands of community members, many, many volunteers, as well as the managers and employees of the JC Penney stores at Eastview Mall, Marketplace Mall, and Greece Ridge Center Mall; as well as those at the Walden Galleria Mall in Buffalo; the Carousel Mall in Syracuse; and the Old Navy Store at The Shops at Ithaca, who all helped to make the 2011 Camp Good Days and Special Times’ Annual Joe Benet Memorial Kazoo Fest a resounding success generating more than $113,000 to support the children and families at Camp Good Days!

On New Year’s Day, I was looking forward to spending the day watching some football, only to be presented with Wendy hollering that she had stabbed herself while shucking oysters. So off we went, first to the Urgent Care in Pittsford, which was very crowded, and then to the Urgent Care in Henrietta. Everyone there was so nice and got Wendy’s injury cleaned and stitched up.

With the start of the New Year, we had for the first time in some weeks, all of our staff members back in the office and we had a Staff Meeting to get everyone caught up. On Wednesday, we hosted our Annual Open House and it was so nice to see so many friends, both new and old, who took the time out of their busy schedules to come and break bread and spend some time with our staff members and fellow visitors at our Mendon Office.

On Thursday we had our first Project Exile Advisory Board Meeting of the year and then I headed to the Monroe County Sports Commission Meeting, where I was elected to serve as Secretary of the Board for another term. On Thursday evening we had the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition & Auction Dinner Committee Meeting.

I am excited about the coming year and all that we have planned. We are now in the process of beginning to lay out the program schedule for 2012 and to put together our Camper Registration Forms and Volunteer Applications. We are fully committed to providing the best programs we can for all the children and families we serve and doing so at no cost to the participants. I continue to marvel at what a great community we have and the fact that we are able to generate the financial support necessary to provide our programs free of charge. Where else can you go where prices are the same that they were 33 years ago – that price being free?

In the coming year we want to expand our Young Adult Program. When we initially began offering this program, it was for those young men and women ages 18-29 dealing with cancer. We expanded the program to include ages 18-39 and we now will expand further by opening the program to those young men and women along with their significant other / friend.

We will also look at offering a Cycling Program for the women who participate in our Women’s Oncology Program, as well as to look at offering a Sailing Program for the women and the Young Adult Program participants.

We are in the full planning process for many of our special fundraising events and for a complete listing of these events as well as the details on how you can get involved, check out our website, www.campgooddays.org. You can also stay up-to-date with all that is going on at Camp Good Days by tuning into the Camp Good Days’ Radio Show, the first Thursday of each month on WYSL News Power 1040AM / 92.1 FM or online at www.wysl1040.com.

We are working full steam ahead with CANCER MISSION 2020 and I am excited about the legislation being drafted now, which will be introduced into Congress by Congressman Tom Reed, co-sponsored by Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle, Congressman Richard Hanna and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul. With this legislation we will begin the Call To Action phase of CANCER MISSION 2020. We have been meeting and talking with Monroe County Executive, Maggie Brooks, and Dr. Byron Kennedy, Assistant Director of the Monroe County Department of Health, regarding a Cancer Plan here in Monroe County. I also had the chance to speak briefly with Rochester Mayor, Tom Richards, about this plan and I am excited that we will be taking a leadership here in Monroe County and the City of Rochester to address this issue.

To kick off the New Year, I had a featured interview about CANCER MISSION 2020 with Norma Holland, which aired yesterday on her “Many Voices, Many Visions” program on 13WHAM TV.

We are also looking to make some updates to the CANCER MISSION 2020 website, www.cancermission2020.com, so be sure to check out the site again and as always, please share the website, the mission, and the CANCER MISSION 2020 Petition with your colleagues, co-workers, family members and friends because if we are going to be successful it is going to start from the bottom and work up and it is going to take each and every one of us!

Father David Ambuske

The Camp Good Days and Special Times’ family lost a very dear and special friend today – Father David Ambuske – who has been a part of our family and my life since my daughter Teddi’s diagnosis with a malignant brain tumor 33 years ago.

No family is ever prepared to deal with the loss of a child, but when Teddi, as most nine-year-olds would do, started talking about and asking questions about what heaven was like and what was it like to die, it was a little beyond my abilities to answer those questions. At the time, David was the Executive Director of the Monroe County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and was an advocate for children in Family Court and knew my first wife. She thought that he would be the perfect person to talk with Teddi and to his credit he took the time out of his busy schedule a few times a week to come over to our house and help her deal with those difficult questions regarding faith.

I liked David from the moment I met him. He was ordained as a Catholic Priest and also had his MSW from Fordham University. He left the priesthood, but when he realized how much he missed that special calling he became an Anglican Priest and opened a small church in Webster, but his job and passion were always young people.

After spending time with Father Dave, Teddi decided that she wanted to be baptized and Father Dave baptized her. When Teddi died in February 1982, which was a very difficult year, Father Dave officiated at her funeral. That summer, of the original 63 campers, 28 had lost their battle to cancer, including Teddi. At that time, we had no offices, we had no staff members – everyone was a volunteer - and we were still utilizing Camp Eagle Cove, a private boys and girls camp, in Inlet, New York in the central part of the Adirondack Mountains. When we arrived for the start of camp that summer, there was a big cloud that hung over all of us, as volunteers were looking for the campers they had befriended previously, only to find out that they had lost their battle with cancer, and our campers from Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse were looking for the friends they had made, only to find out that they had lost their battle with cancer.

One of the young ladies who was volunteering that summer at camp came up to me and said, Mr. Mervis we need to do something, we can’t pretend that these children didn’t exist. I told her that she didn’t need to tell me, as one of those children was Teddi. When I asked what she thought we should do, she said we should have a memorial service. Again, this was a little bit beyond my capabilities, so I called Father Dave who was in Downtown Rochester and told him I needed a favor. I explained what was happening and again to his credit he left work, got in his car, and drove all the way to Camp Eagle Cove. When he arrived, we gathered everyone together and had a memorial service. As soon as Father Dave completed the service it was as if everyone felt they had been granted permission to have fun and enjoy the good days and special times that we had planned for them.

This service became a tradition and a part of our culture here at Camp Good Days and to this day, on the opening evening of each session of camp, we hold an optional memorial service at the beautiful and peaceful Outdoor Chapel at our own Recreational Facility on Keuka Lake. Father Dave never let us down, continuing to conduct these services each week, throughout the summer.

Over the years, I have watched this kind, gentle, and caring man officiate at the funerals of our campers and volunteers and seen him marry volunteers, baptize children of volunteers, and provide the blessing and invocation at so many Camp Good Days’ functions and special events. Father Dave married my children, baptized my grandchildren, and even married my current wife, Wendy and I some 16 years ago.

Over the years, Camp Good Days has served more than 43,000 campers from 22 states and 27 foreign countries and Father Dave was the spiritual advisor to Camp Good Days. We never could have become the organization that we are today if it were not for his willingness to always be there, sharing his skills as a clergyman and social worker.

The loss of Father Dave will be a huge void, one that will be very difficult, if not impossible to fill. I am so deeply saddened and my heart is broken, especially as it is so close to Christmas, but I take comfort in knowing that the memories I have of David and the example he always set of kindness and compassion will remain with me forever. Father Dave walked the walk and he did God’s work here on earth. All of us whose lives he touched will be forever grateful for having had the blessing of knowing him.

Update & Happy Holidays!

I apologize for the delay in updating my blog, but it has been quite hectic here at Camp Good Days the past few weeks!

At the beginning of this month, we marked the one year anniversary of announcing and launching CANCER MISSION 2020…THE END OF CANCER BY THE END OF THE DECADE. We have worked very hard over the past year to move this initiative forward and we have made some real progress. We now have a one-year report compiled, which has been shared with all those who have joined us in this effort through signing the CANCER MISSION 2020 Petition and / or attending one of the three Congressional District Cancer Summits that we held in August. In order to obtain a copy of this report, we only ask that you visit www.cancermission2020.com and join us by signing the CANCER MISSION 2020 Petition.

As I have shared with all of you, CANCER MISSION 2020 is being built upon three key components – INFORMATION – CALL TO ACTION – ACCOUNTABILITY – and we will continue with the Information and Call to Action components during 2012. We met in early November with representatives from Congressman Tom Reed’s Office, Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle’s Office, Congressman Richard Hanna’s Office and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul’s Office, as a follow-up to the CANCER MISSION 2020 Congressional District Cancer Summits and to review the valuable input that came out of the Cancer Summits and determine which recommendations we would move forward with as legislative items that will be introduced into Congress. Congressman Reed and his staff are currently working on drafting the legislation, as a direct result of the Cancer Summits, which will be reviewed by and co-sponsored by Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle, Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, Congressman Richard Hanna and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul and introduced into Congress, hopefully by Valentine’s Day.

One of the good things that has come out of CANCER MISSION 2020 is that representatives from both sides of the aisle – Republican, Democrat, Conservative, Liberal, new and seasoned veterans have all come together, showing that our government can work in a non-partisan way and that some issues, like cancer, have no room for partisan politics. We will be sure to keep everyone informed about the introduction of this important legislation as we move forward.

We are also in the process of making some changes and updates to the CANCER MISSION 2020 website, www.cancermission2020.com, so be sure to keep coming back and checking it out and sharing it with those you know.

It is amazing to think that we are less than two weeks away from Christmas and the end of our Annual Joe Benet Memorial Kazoo Fest. But there is still time for you to stop by and visit one of our Kazoo Fest locations at the mall entrance to JC Penney at Marketplace Mall, Greece Ridge Center Mall, and Eastview Mall, as well as at the Walden Galleria Mall in Buffalo, Carousel Center Mall in Syracuse, and The Shops at Ithaca. You can pick up some last minute gifts and stocking stuffers, get some information about our programs and services and volunteer opportunities, and know that you are helping to provide some good days and special times to the children and families at Camp Good Days.

In the Rochester area, we will once again Kazoo in the New Year as part of the City of Rochester’s New Year’s Celebrations at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center and at the Rochester RazorSharks Basketball Game at the Blue Cross Arena. If you would like to Kazoo in the New Year with us, please contact us at 585-624-5555.

Last Tuesday evening we hosted the Holiday Night to Remember, here in the Mendon Office, which was created in 2007 and is an opportunity for a small group of campers, families and special friends who have been facing an extraordinarily difficult time over the past year to come together and have an evening that celebrates them and the holiday season and helps to generate some beautiful memories. The Holiday Night to Remember also provides the staff members at Camp Good Days a unique and more personal way to help make the Holiday Season a little bit more special for these families. Everyone has the chance to take a moment away from the hustle and bustle and truly appreciate what the holiday season is all about. Everyone had a wonderful evening together and we want to extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to the employees who work in distribution and logistics at Wal-Mart in Marcy, New York, as they not only provide all the gifts for the children and family members but also join us for the evening, helping to serve dinner.

We had our last Project Exile Advisory Board Meeting of 2011 last Thursday and I was pleased to be able to present a plaque of recognition and appreciation to Mike Green who is the out-going Monroe County District Attorney and current nominee for US District Court Judge and to Doug Randall, former Assistant District Attorney and recently elected Monroe County Court Judge. Both Mike and Doug have been ardent supporters of and key partners with Project Exile and Project T.I.P.S. They will both be missed as part of the Project Exile Advisory Board but we all wish them the very best and know they will be successful in their new positions and will continue to make a difference in our community.

Yesterday afternoon we had a Board of Director’s Meeting. It was nice to see some of the Board Members during this Holiday Season and we look forward to a productive and active Board of Directors in the coming year.

As many of you know, my other love is serving as an Assistant Coach with the St. John Fisher College Football Team. This was one of those rare years where we as coaches take a step back and let the kids have a good time and play the game. I don’t think that any of us thought that we would be playing December football, in the Division III Playoffs, when we started camp back in August. It has been great to see this team make it all the way to the Elite Eight, out of 238 Division III football teams. Our magical season came to an end with a loss to the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota. For those interested, the Division III Championship Game will be played this Saturday and will feature the same two teams that have competed in the Stagg Bowl for a number of years.

As this year comes to a close and we look forward to 2012, please take a few moments to be thankful for the many blessings in your life, and remember the children and families at Camp Good Days. If you have had a prosperous year, please consider a donation to Camp Good Days as you make your year-end gifts. It is only through the generosity of so many that we are able to continue providing our programs and services free of charge for the many children and families whose lives have been touched by cancer.

I would also ask that you remember and give thanks for the many men and women in uniform who will not be able to spend the holidays with their families because they are helping to protect the freedom we hold so dear in this wonderful country of ours!

Wishing you all a beautiful and joyous Holiday Season and a New Year filled with good health, peace, happiness and much love!

Friday, November 18, 2011

It has been a few days since my last post and it’s scary to think that as I write this Thanksgiving is less than a week away!

We have definitely been blessed with some good weather for this time of year and I know my old body certainly appreciates it at football practice every day, although last night was chilly and the first snow of the season is on the ground! Fortunately, the St. John Fisher College Cardinals received one of only six at-large bids for the NCAA Division III Playoffs and we are excited to play the Johns Hopkins Blue Jays in the first round of playoffs this Saturday, November 19^th at 12:00 Noon in Baltimore.

As many of you know, part of my job as an Assistant Football Coach at St. John Fisher College is to work with the kickers, punters, holders and snappers. So, with that in mind, Laura shared with me something from her friend, Brendan, who is the Special Teams Coordinator – Tight Ends at Northwestern State University of Louisiana – we liked it so much, that I shared it with the players at practice and I am sharing it with all of you…it’s a good little piece of advice…

In life, like football, sometimes you just have to punt. A job, a goal, a girl, a relationship, a friend, a dream, etc; sometimes it just isn't working and it comes time to punt...but life would be much easier if, like football, there was a scoreboard that told you the exact situation so it would be obvious whether or not it was time to punt...and while I am at it I would like 3 timeouts each half of life too!

I also serve as the Huddle Coach for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes Huddle at Fisher and we meet on Wednesday evenings, right after practice. Each semester I try to choose a book that we can read and discuss together, that demonstrates the role that faith plays in life and athletics. I could not have picked a better book this time – Coach Wooden: The 7 Principles That Shaped His Life and Will Change Yours - we finished the book on Wednesday night and everyone truly enjoyed it.

On Wednesday evening I also had the opportunity, as I do each fall, to attend the Teddi Committee’s Dance for Love Meeting at Fisher. The only tough part is that their meetings start at 9:30 PM…only on a college campus do meetings begin that late! It was great to see so many kids on the committee and their excitement and enthusiasm. This coming February 17 & 18, 2012 will be the 30^th Annual Dance for Love at St. John Fisher College. The Dance for Love is a 24-hour dance marathon, held on campus from 8:00 PM – 8:00 PM. As Camp Good Days has just begun our 33^rd year, the Dance for Love has been a part of our culture and family for nearly all of our history. The support from the students, alumni, faculty, staff and administration has been and continues to be amazing. I am so excited that Dr. Lou Buttino, Professor – Film Studies Department at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, who helped to start the Dance for Love when he was a professor at Fisher and is also the author of For the Love of Teddi: The Story Behind Camp Good Days and Special Times, will be returning to Rochester for the Dance for Love. We are also thrilled that Lou Gramm, of Foreigner fame, will serve as the Honorary Chairman. Lou is a very special person and someone who supported the Dance for Love early on and has always been supportive of the children and families at Camp Good Days. I am sure many more exciting details will be revealed in the weeks and months to come and for more information about the Dance for Love, check out http://home.sjfc.edu/teddi/.

Earlier this week I had the chance to meet an old friend for breakfast. I first met Mary-Beth Cooper when she was working at St. John Fisher College many years ago. Mary-Beth is now the Senior Vice President for Student Affairs at the Rochester Institute of Technology. It was great to catch up with her and we are exploring ways in which the student athletes at RIT can help to share the message and help generate additional awareness for CANCER MISSION 2020.

In regards to CANCER MISSION 2020, our one-year anniversary of launching this important initiative is just two weeks away and we are busy working with the Congressional Offices on drafting legislation as a result of the recommendations that came out of the Congressional District Cancer Summits, as well as finalizing a CANCER MISSION 2020 Report. To keep up-to-date on our progress, and to join us as we work to put an end to cancer by the end of the decade, please check out www.cancermission2020.com, sign the petition and share it with your network.

In other news, the dormitory building being constructed at the Recreational Facility is coming along great! It has been amazing to see this all come together so quickly and they are making great progress. I know it is going to mean a lot, to a lot of people, when we have the official ribbon cutting next spring.

We are also very busy putting the final details into place for the Annual Joe Benet Memorial Kazoo Fest, which begins next Friday, November 25, 2011. We will have Kazoo Fest tables set up in the Greater Rochester area at the mall entrance to JC Penney at Marketplace Mall, Greece Ridge Center Mall, and Eastview Mall, as well as at the Walden Galleria Mall in Buffalo, Carousel Center Mall in Syracuse, and The Shops at Ithaca. The Kazoo Fest goes through Friday, December 23, 2011 and the tables are open on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, and will be open Monday through Friday the week of December 19^th. Please stop by and visit our Kazoo Fest locations – we have some great gifts and stocking stuffers; you can sign the CANCER MISSION 2020 Petition; as well as pick up some information about our programs, services, and volunteer opportunities. Volunteers are still needed at all locations, to help make this another successful Kazoo Fest! Volunteers can choose their preferred location, date and time to help out. Kazoo Fest volunteer shifts are only three or four hours so if you are looking to give back this Holiday Season, we are always looking for some good volunteers. You can get some of your shopping done before or after your shift and at the same time, you will know that you are helping us to provide some good days and special times for some very special children and families in our community! If you or someone you know is interested in helping out with this fun and important fundraising event, please contact your local Camp Good Days’ Office for more details (Rochester: 585-624-5555; Buffalo: 716-206-0709; Syracuse: 315-434-9477; Ithaca: 607-266-9180). The Kazoo Fest Volunteer Form can also be found on our website, www.campgooddays.org.

Today I am looking forward to meeting Doug Randall for lunch. Doug was recently elected to Monroe County Court Judge and I have had the chance to work with him through Project Exile and Project T.I.P.S. Doug has served as a representative for the Project Exile Advisory Board from the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, which has been a key partner in Project Exile since its implementation 13 years ago. Doug has also been a part of the many Project T.I.P.S. (Trust, Information, Programs & Services) events that we have held. Although we will miss him as part of the Project Exile Advisory Board, I am confident that his wealth of experience and his commitment to the community will ensure that he is a welcome addition to County Court.

This coming Monday, I am meeting with Sandra Doorley, who was just elected as Monroe County District Attorney. Sandra is the first female District Attorney in Monroe County history and she has also been an active partner with Project Exile, Project T.I.P.S., and a strong supporter of CANCER MISSION 2020. Sandra has big shoes to fill as District Attorney, but I am confident that she will continue the good work of her predecessor, Mike Green, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with Sandra and the men and women of the District Attorney’s Office, in our efforts to make our a community a safer one in which to live, work and raise a family.

There are many ways that you can stay up-to-date with all that is going on here at Camp Good Days. Check out our websites, www.campgooddays.org and www.cancermission2020.com; follow us on Twitter; become our fan on Facebook; and tune in to “Good Days and Special Times” our Radio Show which I co-host with NEWS10NBC Anchor, Rich Funke. The show airs the first Thursday of each month at 6:30 PM on WYSL NewsPower 1040AM and 92.1 FM. You can also get the podcast of the show at www.wysl1040.com.

As we approach this special time of year, I would like to thank all of you for all that you have done, in big ways and small ways, to help Camp Good Days accomplish all that we have for the children and families we serve. I wish each of you a very Happy Thanksgiving and a season filled with good health, peace, happiness and much love!

November 7, 2011

It is a new week and it’s going to be another busy one here at Camp Good Days. We had a lunch meeting this afternoon, with representatives from Congressman Tom Reed’s Office, Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle’s Office, Congressman Richard Hanna’s Office and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul’s Office, as a follow-up to the CANCER MISSION 2020 Congressional District Cancer Summits held this past August.

The goal of this meeting was to review the valuable input that came out of the Cancer Summits and determine which recommendations we would move forward with, in terms of making those recommendations legislative items that will be introduced into Congress, hopefully by the end of this calendar year. It was a very productive meeting and we have a lot to get done by the end of the year, but we are confident in our ability to continue moving forward with this important initiative.

PLEASE check out CANCER MISSION 2020, www.cancermission2020.com, sign the petition and join us in this important initiative. And please, share the site with your family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, co-workers, etc. It is going to take all of us, together, to finally find the answers and put an end to cancer by the end of the decade!

I am sure that by now most of you have heard the news that the University of Rochester Yellowjackets have announced that they will play in Courage Bowl VIII in 2012, but will then no longer play the St. John Fisher College Cardinals. I will be meeting with the Athletic Director of the University of Rochester tomorrow afternoon, so that we can begin to put the plans into place for Courage Bowl VIII, which will be played on Saturday, September 15, 2012. We are also busy looking for another local team to play in this special game. I have had some great conversations with the Athletic Director at SUNY Brockport, and we hope to be able to have the Brockport Golden Eagles play the Fisher Cardinals in future Courage Bowl games.

This Thursday we have our monthly Project Exile Advisory Board Meeting at the Federal Building and everyone involved continues working to keep illegal guns off of the streets of our community and out of the hands of those who have lost their right to possess them.

Also on Thursday, Lisa Donato, Regional Director of our Buffalo Office will be recognized and honored as one of the Buffalo Business Journal’s 2011 40 Under Forty Award recipients. CONGRATULATIONS to Lisa for all that she does to help us provide some good days and special times for the many children and families we serve!

In other news, Laura was out of town last week so my schedule was a bit lighter than usual and I had the opportunity to head out to the Recreational Facility and see the progress that is being made on the new Dormitory Building. The building looks fantastic and is going to be beautiful. This new building will not only provide us with some much-needed, additional accommodations, particularly since we tore down the old motel building, but it is going to be very special, as it is being built in memory and honor of Lyle Corey. Lyle, as many of you know, was a very special friend to the children at Camp Good Days and a steadfast supporter of all that we do, especially the Kids Adjusting Through Support (KATS) Program. We want to thank LeChase Construction, where Lyle worked, for all of their help and support in making this project possible, as well as all of the individuals and companies that are donating so much of their time, talents and materials.

I recently received a letter from the American Camp Association (ACA) with the official scores from the re-accreditation we had this past summer. We have been so pleased to be an ACA Accredited Camp, as this is like the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval for the camping industry. Every three years we have to go through a re-accreditation process and our accreditation demonstrates and confirms that we are following the accepted standards of practices and policies to ensure the continued safety and security of our many, many campers, volunteers and staff. I am thrilled to report that we passed the re-accreditation with flying colors – receiving the highest possible scores.

Some final thoughts for this week…

The Fisher Cardinals took a tough loss this past weekend to Salisbury and we will play our final regular season game this coming Saturday at Hartwick College. Fingers are crossed for a victory to cap off the regular season and the opportunity to move on to some post-season play!

Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 8, 2011 is ELECTION DAY. Don’t forget to vote! It only takes a few minutes of your time and your vote is important.

I also encourage everyone to take a few moments this week, especially this Friday, November 11, 2011 to honor and remember all of our veterans who have served and all those men and women who continue to serve our country, putting their lives on the line everyday to ensure our continued safety and freedom.

October 28, 2011

It is hard to believe that we are heading into November already! But, with the chill in the air and snow flurries in the forecast it appears that we are definitely entering the winter season and the special time of year when we all can take some time to give thanks for our many blessings and think about those who are less fortunate and how we might be able to make a difference in their lives.

As many of you know, all of the programs and services we provide here at Camp Good Days, for so many children and families whose lives have been touched by cancer, are offered free of charge for the participants. This is because I made a promise 33 years ago when I started Camp Good Days, that no family would be faced with the decision between paying their bills on time and sending their loved one to Camp Good Days. However, the only way we are able to continue fulfilling this promise is because of the assistance of thousands of volunteers and the generous support of so many individuals, businesses and organizations and the success of our many special fundraising events and activities.

One of our largest fundraising activities is the Annual Joe Benet Memorial Kazoo Fest, which has become a long-standing holiday tradition, and was started more than 60 years ago by Joe Benet outside the Toy Department of the Sibley’s store on Main Street in downtown Rochester. Following Joe Benet’s death from cancer, his son, Bill, contacted me to see if the Kazoo Fest tradition could be continued, staffed by volunteers, with proceeds benefiting the programs and services at Camp Good Days. Since 1984, Camp Good Days, with help and support from various retail locations and thousands of volunteers, has continued the Kazoo Fest. The 2011 Kazoo Fest will kick off on Black Friday – November 25, 2011 – in the Greater Rochester area at the mall entrance to JC Penney at Marketplace Mall, Greece Ridge Center Mall, and Eastview Mall, as well as at the Walden Galleria Mall in Buffalo, Carousel Center Mall in Syracuse, and The Shops at Ithaca. Hundreds of volunteers are needed at all locations, to help make this another successful Kazoo Fest! If you or someone you know is interested in helping out with this fun and important fundraising event, please contact your local Camp Good Days’ Office for more details (Rochester: 585-624-5555; Buffalo: 716-206-0709; Syracuse: 315-434-9477; Ithaca: 607-266-9180). The Kazoo Fest Volunteer Form can also be found on our website, www.campgooddays.org.

In addition to the many events that Camp Good Days hosts, we oftentimes have groups that hold events to raise funds to support the children and families we serve. I recently had the pleasure of attending the Hockey Versus Cancer event, which was a fun evening with some great people. This afternoon, some of the organizers of that event, along with their children visited us here at the Camp Good Days’ Headquarters to present us with the proceeds from their event. We are so thankful to all those that helped to plan and coordinate the Hockey Versus Cancer event, and all those who attended. For more information about their program, check out www.hockeyvscancer.com.

There are so many ways that you and your family and friends can be involved with and support Camp Good Days and I encourage you to check out our website frequently, as well as our facebook page and to follow us on Twitter, so you can stay up-to-date with the many different activities, events, and volunteer opportunities that are available.

We also had a meeting of the Camp Good Days COURAGE BOWL Committee this afternoon, to review Courage Bowl VII, which was played on September 17, 2011 and to begin to lay the groundwork for Courage Bowl VIII in September 2012. Although there have been some rumblings about the future of the Courage Bowl and who will be participating, I can assure all of you that there will be a Courage Bowl VIII in 2012! We will be sharing plans and details about the Courage Bowl, as they are made and become available, so stay tuned! And let us never forget that the Courage Bowl was established to be more than just a football game – it is an opportunity for some very special children who are dealing with cancer to have the chance to be a part of college football team or cheerleading squad and to create some outstanding memories from that experience.

Another of our major fundraising events, and the largest in the Greater Rochester area, is the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition and Auction Dinner. The Committee for this enormous event will be meeting next Tuesday evening to start to put together all of the details for both the 12^th Annual Wine Competition, which will be held March 24-25, 2012 and the 12^th Annual Wine Auction Dinner, scheduled for Saturday, May 5, 2012. We have announced a new Art Contest as part of this event. The Wine Cover Art Contest will serve to select the artwork that will be used and displayed on the various promotional and printed materials, including the cover artwork for the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition Entry Form and Finger Lakes International Wine Auction Dinner Program Book.

The Wine Cover Art Contest is open to anyone ages 18 and older. Artwork submissions must be original work and must be a painting, drawing, high resolution original photograph, or sketch. All of the details, entry rules and prize information, as well as the Official Entry Form can be found on our website, www.campgooddays.org. All submissions will be reviewed and evaluated and the top 10 finalists will be announced on Friday, December 16, 2011. The top 10 finalists’ submissions will be evaluated by a panel of judges and the winning submission will be announced on Wednesday, January 4, 2012.

On a personal note, the St. John Fisher College Cardinals Football Team will host Utica College tomorrow evening at Growney Stadium and we are looking for another big win in conference play, so here’s hoping for a nice evening without rain or snow, and another victory for the Fisher Cardinals!

Wishing all of you a safe and happy weekend and Halloween!

October 18, 2011

Once again, the Camp Good Days’ family, along with the Rochester Institute of Technology community, and the Greater Rochester community, lost a very special soul to cancer with the passing of Donna Scheid on Monday morning. Donna leaves behind her husband, Pete, and her beautiful children.

Over the past 11 years, the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition and Auction Dinner has become the single largest fundraising event for Camp Good Days in the Greater Rochester area and Donna was one of the people who committed and devoted so much of her time, talent, and many volunteer hours to help this event become so successful. The logistics of an event of this magnitude require the hard work, effort and dedication of hundreds of volunteers and even with her diagnosis and battle with cancer, Donna was always smiling and always willing to do whatever she could to help.

This brings me back to when are we going to say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?! When are we, as Americans, from the greatest nation on earth, going to say that we need to do more? More not only for the 11,000 Americans who die from cancer every single week, but more for the world we will leave behind. What greater gift could we give to the world than to find the answers that have been eluding us in this fight against cancer?

In the past month alone, Walter Mondale’s daughter, Eleanor, died from cancer; Ted Kennedy’s daughter, Kara, died as a result of the cancer treatments she went through; Steve Jobs lost his battle with pancreatic cancer; and Donna lost her battle. These four individuals were under the age of 60, and all of their deaths have occurred since September 17^th. These are only four of the 44,000 Americans that have died as a result of cancer during the past four weeks. These people should have had so much more life to live and so much more ahead of them.

On December 2^nd, we will commemorate the one-year anniversary of announcing and launching CANCER MISSION 2020…THE END OF CANCER BY THE END OF THE DECADE. When we announced CANCER MISSION 2020 at Frontier Field in Rochester, we said that our effort would include a three-pronged approach – Information, Call to Action, Accountability.

We have been and continue to share information with people about where we currently stand in our fight against cancer. 11,000 Americans die from cancer every single week, which is as if one of the Twin Towers was falling every single day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. One in three American women and one in two American men will face a cancer diagnosis at some point in their lifetime. If you are 85 years old or younger, cancer is the leading cause of death in the United States and many believe that by 2016 cancer will be leading cause of death in the United States, regardless of age. In 2010, the World Health Organization announced that cancer was not only the most economically devastating disease, but for the first time had become the number one disease killer.

We have to go about finding the answers in a completely different way. The one area in which we have had some success is in pediatric cancer research. This success has come about because of the fact that approximately 60-70% of pediatric cancer patients are actively involved in clinical trials. However, when it comes to adults, currently only 1-3% of adult cancer patients, of which there are many more than pediatric patients, are actively involved in clinical trials. If only 1-3% of adult cancer patients are involved in clinical trials, it is easy to see why 11,000 Americans are dying every single week. This needs to change because the answers are going to be found through clinical trials and no matter how good something appears with animals in a lab, it has to also be shown to have a positive impact on human beings, otherwise it will never get into the hands of those who could most benefit.

When we announced CANCER MISSION 2020, we shared this information and asked people to visit our website, www.cancermission2020.com and I am pleased that thousands and thousands of people have visited the site and have joined us by signing the CANCER MISSION 2020 Petition.

We also shared the belief that in order to be successful in this effort, it would have to be a cooperative and collaborative one involving government and the private sector. Cancer is an issue that affects all of us and has brought together representatives from all sides of the aisle…freshman and experienced, Republican, Democrat, Conservative, Liberal, Independent, Tea Party, etc. Cancer is an issue of the people and it crosses all lines. This past August, we held three Congressional District Cancer Summits. These Cancer Summits, held in the 25^th Congressional District Cancer Summit with Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle, the 28^th Congressional District with Congresswoman Louise Slaughter, and the 29^th Congressional District with Congressman Tom Reed, brought together several hundred people, as well as some of the most prominent cancer physicians in Upstate New York. Dr. Stephen Edge of Roswell Park Cancer Institute and member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network Executive Committee, Dr. Leslie Kohman, Distinguished Service Professor, Medical Director of Surgery, and Medical Director, Upstate Cancer Center at Upstate University Hospital, Candace Johnson, PhD, Deputy Director, Chair, Pharmacology and Therapeutics and Wallace Chair in Translational Research at Roswell Park Cancer Institute, and Lydia C. Pan, Director of Worldwide Policy at Pfizer, Inc. shared their expertise, research, comments and ideas with attendees.

We are now in the process of compiling all of the information that came out of the Congressional District Cancer Summits and preparing a CANCER MISSION 2020 Update & Report. We are also pleased to report that Congressman Richard Hanna of New York’s 24^th Congressional District and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul of New York’s 26^th Congressional District have committed their support and have expressed their willingness to host additional Congressional District Cancer Summits.

When my granddaughter asked me why at my age, I was taking on the CANCER MISSION 2020 effort, as she said that it seemed like a daunting task, I answered her that yes it is a daunting task, but I am tired of going to funerals.

In my role as Chairman & Founder of Camp Good Days, which just began its 33^rd year of operation, I have had the opportunity to work with thousands of cancer patients and their families and I have gone to way too many funerals, probably more funerals than some clergy members.

If we are going to be successful in this effort it is going to take all of us! PLEASE, if you have not yet checked out CANCER MISSION 2020, www.cancermission2020.com, please go to the site, sign the petition and join us in this important initiative. And please, share the site and the initiative with your family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, co-workers, fellow parishioners, etc. It is going to take all of us, together, to finally find the answers and put an end to cancer by the end of the decade!