Thanks for all of your support!

I apologize for the delay it making this posting. Things have been busy and I haven't really had much to say as of late but I wanted to thank everyone who attended the walk on September 14th or helped support the event. The event was a huge success and the great people from The Congenital Heart Information Network and The Children's Heart Foundation are planning to have the event again next year. The event raised about $25,000 and that means a lot of families in need of help and guidance will get some assistance. Personally it ment a lot to Emily and I to see all of our friends and family there walking in memory of our Lily. It's been over 8 months now since we lost Lily and Emily and I still have to relieve that day every day. It's still always on our minds and a topic of discussion in our house each day. It was a great feeling to see everyone there with Lily on their minds and in their hearts. Events like this are ways that we still can feel close to our daughter so we greatly appreciate everyone coming out and sharing this moment with us. The sun shined bright on us that day!

Come Walk for Lily!

On September 14th, please come join Emily and I for a walk at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. The walk is a fundrasier for the Congenital Heart Information Network and the Children's Heart Foundation. We have previously helped raise money for the CHIN with the "Circle of Heart's Campaign" back in February thru May. Emily and I have started a team and if you are interested in joining our team, please click on the link below. We are trying to get as many people as possible to join our team and walk in Lily's memory. It's been a tough year for Emily and I but we are trying to stay positive and do something positive to help others in the memory of our daughter Lily. Everyone has been so supportive and we thought this would be a great way for everyone to get together, help raise money for a very important cause, and enjoy a nice day at the zoo. Anyone who signs up on our team gets free admission to the zoo for the day and there will also be light refreshments after the walk. All family members including kids are welcome to join our team. The walk will be through the zoo grounds early in the morning on September 14th. If you can't make it to the zoo on the 14th but still want to help, please contact Emily or myself. We are helping the CHIN out with this event and have volunteered to help supply refreshments after the walk for all of the participants. They are expected a large amount of walkers so please come be a part of the fun and walk for Lily's Dream Team!

Link to join Lily's Dream Team:
http://heartstrides2.kintera.org/lilyonderko

Save the Date!

I just want to tell everyone to mark Sunday, September 14th down on your calendar as the date of the first annual CHIN/CHF Heartstrides Pediatric CHN Heart Walk at the Cleveland Metropark Zoo. Tenatively the event will start at 8:00am. This will be a family fun walk at the zoo where anyone may attend and walk in honor or memory of someone they know that has been effected by a Congenital Heart Defect. We have teamed up with the local chapter of the CHIN (Congenital Heart Information Network) and are trying to spread the word about this event. Emily and I are trying to do what we can do assist the local Ohio chapter in making this a great event for all. I know that Emily and I would really appreciate many people coming out to the zoo that morning and walking in memory of our Lily. There will be many more details in regards to this event so check back occationally for more details!

Thanks!

Meet our new friend Brendon!

Attention everyone! I am asking that everyone take the time to read the story of Brendon Shadle. We just recently met Brendon and his mother Melody but we previously had been made aware of his story. When Emily and I heard about this amazing little boy who suffers from similar heart conditions that our daughter Lily had, we wanted to learn more. Brendon also suffers from a Congenital Heart Defect known as Pumonary Atresia but his case is more complicated. Brendon is four years old and has been through a lot in his life, as has his family. Instead of retelling his entire story, I will direct you to a website dedicated to telling Brendon's story: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/brendonshadle
Please take the time to visit his website and learn about this amazing little boy. Once Emily and I learned about what Brendon and his family were going through we decided we wanted to try to help. Today we got the opportunity to meet Brendon and now we want to help even more. Brendon's mom Melody has been working hard to raise money to help deal with the overwhelming medical expenses that have piled up over the last four years. Brendon faces further surgeries in the near future, one that he will need to travel all the way to California for. I want to get the message out about Brendon hoping that others will want to help as well. Please visit his website and read his amazing story. Also, this Saturday, June 14th, there will be a cookout held at McCarthy's Ale House of Avon Lake. The event starts at 5:00pm and tickets cost $20.00 at the door. It will be a night of great food and fun and will be for an important cause. If you come you will be helping raise money to help Brendon and his family. Let's make sure Brendon and his family get all the help that we can possibly give them. Please pass this on to everyone you know!

Thanks!

Lily's Garden at Ronald McDonald House

Here's a few pictures from this past Saturday at the Ronald McDonald House:

Before:

After:

The volunteers that made it possible:

Thankyou to everyone who helped us build such a wonderful place in memory of our Lily. We hope that the families in need at the Ronald McDonald House can enjoy Lily's Garden and we hope that it brings joy into their lives. It's amazing what 20 people can do in a few hours with a couple of shovels, a few flowers, a giant rock, and a lot of really big hearts!

Lily's Garden at RMH

Thanks to all of Emily's great friends in her book club, a special area in the gardens of the Ronald McDonald House in Cleveland will be utilized in a very special way. A special garden in memory of our daughter Lily has been planned. The ladies in Emily's book club came up with the idea shortly after Lily passed away. Now that the weather has finally started to warm up (somewhat) it's time to roll up our sleeves and get a little dirty. This Saturday, members of Emily's book club, some family members, and some friends will be meeting at the Ronald McDonald House in Cleveland to begin working on Lily's Garden. This will be a permanent garden on the grounds of the Ronald McDonald House. This garden will be a place where families can relax and have fun and watch their children play while they visit or are staying at the Ronald McDonald House. There will be tons of beautiful plants and flowers in the garden and much more. The above picture is of the grounds as they currently look. We plan on turning this spot into a colorful, fun outdoor area just as Lily would have wanted. Check back next week for pictures of the garden after we get our hands dirty this Saturday. For more information on the Ronald McDonald House of Cleveland, please visit:
http://www.clevelandrmh.org/

Fundraiser at Tailgators

This past Saturday we held an event at Tailgators Sports Bar to help raise money to aide families that have a child with a Congenital Heart Defect. We held a Silent Auction, a 50/50 raffle, and a special raffle for a set of Club Level tickets to a Cleveland Indians game. The night was a huge success. Emily and I had been trying to raise money for the past two months for the Congenital Heart Information Network's "Circle of Hearts" campaign. We had a fundraising goal of $5000.00 and as of a month ago, it didn't seem like we would even come close to that. Thanks to the event we participated in at the Winking Lizard and the fundraiser at Tailgators, I am pleased to announce we had met and surpassed our goal of $5000.00. In fact, we raised almost $5000.00 alone at the event at Tailgators. The event was a huge success and I think everyone had a lot of fun too. We raised a lot of money for a great cause but we also raised awareness on CHD's. We also got to share Lily's story with lots of people. I only can hope that Lily somewhere knows how many lives she has touched. Our little girl has inspired us to try to reach out and help other families in need. We have donated the money from the Indians ticket raffle, the 50/50 raffle, and other flat donations to our Circle of Hearts fundraising site for Lily. If you visit the site you will see we have now surpassed our goal. Once we have all the money from the silent auction in, we are going to the majority of it for a donation to the Congenital Heart Information Network's "Spencer Fund". Spencer's Fund directly helps families in need who are dealing with a child that has been effected by a CHD. Many of these families are spending countless hours in hospitals while there child is trying to recover from major heart surgery. Some of these families are having difficulty paying bills and providing for their other children. We are also donating a portion to the F.E.E.L. program at Fairview Hospital. The F.E.E.L. program (Families Experiencing Early Loss) did a great job taking care of us while Emily was still in the hospital recovering after Lily had passed away. That program helped us when we needed it the most so we are more then happy to repay the kindness. Emily and I want to thank everyone who particpiated in some way with our event at Tailgators and we want to thank everyone who participated in our fundraiser for Lily over the past few months. We could never have reached our goals if it was not for the generosity of all of you!