Reeling and Healing Midwest Blog

This past weekend Reeling & Healing Midwest attended the Oak Brook Chapter of Trout Unlimited’s (http://www.obtu.org/) Annual Banquet. It was held at the Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield, IL. There where auction items galore (C&D won a couple items), food, drink and good company. By all accounts, the event was a great success for OBTU, and we congratulate them.

We were guests of Wally & Patrica Bock and the OBTU Board. We had a great time. Thank you so much for your generous invitation and including us at your fund raiser.

At this time, we’d like to extend a special thank you to Wally for his help and support throughout the year with Reeling & Healing Midwest. His impact and contribution have been beneficial to everyone. And a special thanks to his wife, Pat, for letting him go the 6 weekends a year to help at our retreats (we will get her up at a retreat this year).

OBTU, a big thank you for all the good work you do for the streams, rivers, conservation and the fish.

On behalf of OBTU, we would like to thank all the great people and companies who donated the auction and raffle items. Even Ron Barch, a guide and bamboo rod maker from Michigan, attended and donated a few items including a guide trip, to show his support for OBTU.

It’s events like these that help organizations, like Reeling & Healing Midwest, who rely so heavily on their community of supporters to succeed. In addition, it helps introduce us to new people and expand our network. And even if just a few people offer their support or spread the word about us, it helps our programs and most importantly, the individuals who participate.

We appreciate it all.

Fish On!

Well, there she is all over the news, being interviewed and questioned. Elizabeth Edwards. One more woman surviving breast cancer, working hard to take back her life from her first battle, fighting past the underlying fears of ���will it come back again���, even writing a book about the support she has received and her endeavor to help others struggling and surviving cancer.

And there she is now, diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer in her bones.

I met Elizabeth last fall at the Lance Armstrong Foundation���s Inaugural Summit on Cancer Survivorship. She was the last speaker to take the stage, share her story, share her inspiration, share her future goals, share how her life had changed for her family and herself, and more.

The portions of her speech I will never forget are those that were peppered with the letters written to her from individuals - cancer survivors and caregivers - whom she had never met. The anonymous writers had reached out to her to share simple thoughts and stories of their journey, acknowledge her courage and hope, to bolster her resolve and encourage her to fight, to share their prayers with her, and most importantly, to let her know that she wasn’t alone on her journey.

Those words produced flashbacks of the women I have met at our retreats - who have journeyed through their battle and survivorship - and not alone. Each of them, on their own terms, found purpose in sharing their stories, sharing their hope and their choices with those they met along the way - on and off the river. Their outreach and comfort prevail onward and are there whenever called forth.

I have lost friends who, having battled their cancer the first time and claiming a triumphant win, were later diagnosed with more havoc within their bodies. These men and women continued on their own way - some by beating the disease once again, some by making the best of their last days, some by subjecting themselves to clinical trials, some by knowing after a span of months or years, that it was time to stop taking the pain killers and the medication - that the disease had become extremely relentless and wasn’t going to loosen its hold - ever. Each has been a hero, an inspiration. Each has been courageous and beautiful. Each is similar to Elizabeth.

Who are we to question what their choices should be? With 3 out of 4 families affected by cancer in our nation, with the possibility of 1 out of 2 men contracting cancer in their lifetime, and 1 out of 3 women contracting it as well, don’t you think they should be making their own decisions and living their life on their own terms?

I applaud Elizabeth for sharing her story and undergoing the scrutiny from the public and media. At times our media seems to be as relentless as cancer. However, the good to come from her telling/sharing her story is that our community is becoming more aware of the havoc that cancer does cause, the good that is being done to prolong life and survivorship, and hopefully it will open new doors, understanding and research so we can rid the world of cancer altogether.

And as I applaud Elizabeth, I applaud all the survivors, caregivers and advocates I know, and have known, who share their stories, reach out to lend a hand, give support to the best of their abilities, and encourage hope and life on their own terms.

Fish On!

There I was, manning the booth with two wonderful gentlemen, Dave and Wally. They had just returned from a much needed break and now it was my turn. I had decided to head into the main show arena and create the opportunity to connect with some of the vendors and guides who have supported us in the past years. Armed with business cards, I combed back my hair and made a run for it.

As I strolled into the arena, I noticed a friend with whom I hadn���t seen in quite some time, but always made an effort to ask about - whether his well-being or what he was currently involved in within the world of fly fishing. The past few years he had written a book, received a number of awards and was diligently fighting the big corporations who were buying up water rights throughout the Midwest. I was excited to see him and have the opportunity to catch-up and share our latest life stories. Little did I know how his life was changing. Read more…