Saturday, May 10, 2008

ok...big announcement here....we need your help!!

Scrapbookers, crafty people, Ebay sellers, and organized people, we need your help!

If you look around the internet, you are sure to find story after story of heartbreak. SO many people with so many needs. How can we ever know them all, much less help, when there are simply so many? I do my best to help in small ways, but my family is not rich, and my resources are much smaller than my heart.
One child who has been on my heart for several years now is a precious little boy named Parker. It was Parker's cute face that first caught my attention, and his constant battle for health.



His health issues include:

1.Pulmonary Hypertension

2. sleep apnea.

3. Tracheotomy.

4.Ventilator

5. Tethered Spinal Cord

6. Failure to Thrive

7. G-tube

8. Bowel Obstruction

9. Colostomy

10. Down syndrome.

That is a lot going on for such a little guy, huh? If you were to read his webpage, though, you would not find yourself crying or sad. You would find yourself smiling, and find strength in yourself you didn't know you had. If this teeny little guy can go through all of this, and still be SO tough, well then, *I* can do anything I set my mind to. When I am feeling sorry for myself, I read his mother's words and recognize quickly just how lucky I really am. There is no self-pity here, just the honesty and determination of a mother who adores her baby boy.

So how can you help? What can YOU do that will make a difference? Parker is on several expensive medications, and has already had two surgeries and many stays in the PICU at Primary Children’s Hospital in SLC, Utah. He has another series of surgeries coming right up. Because insurance only partially covers Parker’s numerous medical bills, a special account has been set up at all Zion’s Banks in the name of Parker Reed Hodson. These funds will help to ensure that Parker is able to get the care that is absolutely necessary to his overall health, well being, and quality of life. All donations benefit the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act in the name of Parker Reed Hodson.

Some of Parker's friends would like to do a unique fundraiser for him! We think we may have a way to help raise money for Parker's Fund without costing any of us an arm and a leg, or requiring too much of our precious time from our own families. A virtual craft fair!!!

One thing about the scrapbooking community, it is always up for a challenge. Folks that spend their hours creating memories and treasuring the moments will surely understand what it means for this family to be able to treasure every one of them with Parker.

If a whole bunch of us created scrapbook pages, sets, or kits that could be sold on Ebay, we could send the Pages 4 Parker to a central disbursement person, who would ship them out as they sell. The pages could depict any event or milestone, from First Birthdays to Weddings, Baby Showers, Proms, First Steps, First Teeth, Ballet recitals, Karate, Baseball...the list is endless...just create a page that someone out there will want to buy, and allow us to send the profits to this precious child and help take some of the load off of his family. Please, if you can spare the time, create something beautiful in his honor. Make it about anything you desire. In fact, if you don't scrap, but still feel moved to help, feel free to be in touch with us and tell us what you might be able to offer. Whatever it is, we will lovingly accept on his behalf.

OUR NEEDS TODAY INCLUDE:

1) AWARENESS of the project-Can you can help us spread the word to every scrapbooking mama you know? Help us make Pages 4 Parker a huge success. Send this information to everyone you know, ask them to forward it, too. If you can, print off the information and take it to your local crafting stores.

2) ORGANIZERS- do you Ebay enough to know the ins and outs? Can you help us set up this virtual craft sale, to maximize profits and avoid pitfalls? Can you help with listings, etc?

3) CENTRAL SHIPPERS- are you organized enough to be the central shipping person for this project? It would mean receiving and cataloging items as they come in. You should own a digital camera and be able to photograph the items digitally so we can show them on the blog and on Ebay.

4) PRAYER WARRIORS- Parker needs prayer. Remember him in your prayers every day, he is about to undergo some extremely painful surgeries. Pray for his family too, that they not worry too much and are at peace with his surgeries.


We are working on where to send your finished product, and how to maximize your gift to it's fullest extent, but you can get started now if you'de like. THANK YOU for caring!! Check back often for more information.

If you aren't crafty, and still want to help, maybe you could make a small donation to his paypal fund. An account has been associated with Parker’s fund, making it easy for you to donate online. By simply clicking Make a Donation here or on the button provided in the sidebar on the right hand side of the first page of Parker’s blog.
Scrappers...start your engines...and please check Pages 4 Parker for more details.

On behalf of Parker and his family, thank you.



1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Michelle - This is such a lovely idea! I'll start working on some pages to donate -- I'm also good friends with a CM consultant with a huge business. I will pass this on to and see if she would be able to ask for some page donations from her clients. :)