An Invitation To Help

Dear Friends,

As many of you may have heard by now, our good friend Ginni Callahan faced one of life’s most daunting experiences this past winter: breast cancer. In true Ginni style she’s doing it with grace and dignity.

Breast cancer has no boundaries. It can affect the young as well as those in the expected age bracket, and it can affect women as well as men. It can impact those with no family history. And, for those who don’t know Ginni - a professional sea kayak coach who paddles the Columbia River, Washington - it can surprise those who lead wholesome, healthy lifestyles. This is a reminder to all of us to get checked and self-test as early detection is our best defense.

More details about breast cancer risk factors both in and out of your control is summarized at the Susan G. Komen for the Cure website:

http://cms.komen.org/komen/AboutBreastCancer/index.htm

Breakthrough Breast Cancer in the UK also has an excellent awareness page:

http://www.breakthrough.org.uk/about_breast_cancer/index.html

Ginni is many things to us: a leader, author, coach, paddling partner, and certainly an indomitable inspiration. Her blog records her new home – the Kayak Farm – suffering an onslaught of homeownership last November when she bought her first pressure washer:

“The pressure washing got me carried away, as dynamic water often does. Intended target was the house. What a whole new attitude! It’s no longer a dumpy old farm project, but an actual white house, kinda cute, at that. Then, power in my hands, I looked around. The concrete patio slab got blasted. The walkway to nowhere from the front door (discovered that it says 1940 on it). My crumpled but drivable car… Luckily there were no friends around that day, to get blasted or to try to stop me!”

The following week she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS, a non-invasive cancer limited to duct tissue) extending beyond the limits of the biopsy sample in all directions. Doctors recommend mastectomy, scheduled for December 12. She was home at the Farm recovering on the 14th, and on the road to The Baja by the beginning of January.

Ginni headed to Baja not only for the “surf therapy” needed to help her recover but also for her livelihood. Seasonal, migrating kayak coaches have to keep moving to keep solvent - and still rarely allow that they need help.

While she has been gone a group of friends devised ways for her compadres (that’s You) to help Ginni financially. Not everyone can get down to Loreto for one of her brilliant classes – so here are some options. Two ways you can help:

1. Donate to your nearest foundation. If you’re in the States, that’s Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Click here to START Oregon and SW Washington Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the CureEND . This secure form accepts most credit cards and has a Verisign secure certificate.

2. 
   

UK-based readers may use their cards securely to donate to Breakthrough Breast Cancer here: http://www.justgiving.com/seakayaking.

Both sites can accept payments from other countries.

2. Send a check directly to Ginni and receive a personalized thank-you. Please make check payable to:

Virginia Callahan

…and put it in the mail to:

Chick

PO Box 473

Nehalem, OR 97131

$40 gift. With this gift you will receive a 5X7 photo off Ginni’s Favorite Photo page: http://columbiariverkayaking.com/photos.html

Please specify which photo you would like and include a return address. You will receive your photo in May.

$60 gift. With this gift to Ginni, you will receive a new copy of Steady As She Goes: Women's Adventures at Sea, edited by Barbara Sjoholm (now out of print), while supplies last.

$100 gift. With this gift you will receive a copy of This is The Sea DVD, and an 8 x 10 photo off Ginni’s Favorite Photo page: http://columbiariverkayaking.com/photos.html

Please specify which photo you would like and include a return address. You will receive your photo and DVD in May.

Anything is appreciated, and the most important thing to take away from this experience is to stay informed about breast cancer.

Just received a link to the Pacific Northwest's Komen donation page. So for those who don't want to send a check/deposit to Ginni's account but still support this cause (or want to support a couple nuts in a 22-foot pink, fibreglass kayak pulling sequential 12 - 14 hour days), click here.

Full URL for your re-posting:
https://dnbweb1.blackbaud.com/OPXDONATE/donate.asp?cguid=9AB0A039%2DD0B8%2D4DBD%2DA1D2%2DD879DC174CBF&dpid=1156

Thanks!

Raising Fitness, Raising Funds

So here we are only 54 days away from meeting on Orcas Island, and 55 days from our first strokes around Vancouver Island. Roughly.

I'm firing off 11-mile paddles on my lunch break and looking for more gym time in the evening. But fitness is only part of our preparation.

We (actually Breakthrough Breast Cancer) just got a first donation on the site Keirron set up through the UK JustGiving sponsorship site!

http://www.justgiving.com/seakayaking

Here's the link to our local Komen Foundation donation site - they support an excellent research program here in the States.

And for those who know our bow-maiden beneficiary, we hope to get a local online donation setup directly to Ginni as well. In the meantime, email me to get on a list with more details on Ginni's donation bank account and I'll copy you on our April press release.

Happy paddles!

2007-01-22

So it's three weeks into the New Year and it no longer feels new. Weeks are flying by!

In brief - training is good; a little off my (kayak) mileage this week due to weather and ice last week, and voluminous volumes of voracious work. On the other hand, I skied 10 - 15 km skate with the middle schoolers Sunday (teacupnordic.org) and felt great!

Bigger news - went paddling with Ginni, Steve and Cindy last week, just a couple days before Ginni heads off to The Baja. Why news? Because Ginni, who's my age - in other words, primed with life, get-outta-my-way-attitude, and can-do-itis - had a bout with breast cancer between Thanksgiving and Xmas. She's shared her experiences in her blog, kayaktravel.blogspot.com. As usual when cancer comes home to the family, it wakes one up a little; so I thought maybe we could do something about it as part of the attention drawn to this expedition. (Gets the focus off us a little too, which I find appealing - and I'm sure she finds obnoxious.)

Ginni has paddled in the UK with Nigel Dennis, Justine Curgenven (making it into This Is The Sea I), and my cohort Keirron Tastagh; she's a 5-Star paddler, excellent coach, and generally makes an impression.

I sent one email to Keirron and bam - like clicking the color-changer in an online auto-shopping website - our boat went safety orange or yum-yum yellow - to pink. Susan G. Komen pink.

Look for more soon - for now, if you know Ginni personally, please consider a donation in any amount to her directly using the Paypal account I set up here. If you don't know Ginni, or want to spread your generosity a little wider, please read the Komen Donation pages.

And, finally, the part of that brief tour from Cathlamet I'm de-emphasizing, I'll share Steve's "can't resist" post to Paddling.net:
http://www.paddling.net/message/showThread.html?fid=advice&tid=597513#597572

Ginni and I had swapped back paddles (I was checking out her new, heavy fleet Werner in exchange for my Epic wing), and were floating there, chatting about water quality, testing, and potential links to health. I put in a little rudder stroke to slow my drift - and got a sudden, cold reminder about water quality right up my nose. Tripped over the wing! Rolled up, yes, but had quite a shock -- since I generally paddle for fitness, a mellow afternoon paddle apparently breaks my concentration, which was needed apparently more than I realized to that point.

Keeping the levity (and considering thicker fleece next time I'm on the Columbia) is what I'm all about.

Thanks for reading,
Jeff