Monthly Archives: January 2016

Something To Believe In

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I’m somewhat at a loss for words…

Last week brought about many different reasons for hope and opportunity.  On Tuesday, I was scrolling though my inbox and saw an email from my doctor.  Under normal circumstances, I probably would have taken the contents of that message as bad news.  However, as I began reading the message, I realized that I went from feeling nervous and timid to shocked; my body rendered momentarily unconscious.

Before I head out the door for work, I like to spend some time watching the morning news to get me up-to-speed on everything I need to know for the day ahead.  What I find is that 99.9% of the news is full of sad, depressing stories.  And when I am on social media, I find that I have further found myself surrounded by news not for the faint of heart.

The email that I refer to contained news, but this news was different. It gave me a renewed sense of hope and acted as  a much-needed reminder of all the good and kindness in the world.

So I’m just going to cut to the chase: in that email from my doctor, I learned that through the Denver Foundation, a gift of $53,000 was made to The Cusano Family Fund for Brain Tumor Research!

Cusano Family Brain Tumor Fund - LogoAfter composing myself, collecting my thoughts and having my excitement under momentary control, I sent an immediate email back to my doctor:  Who did this?  Why was my fund chosen?  How did they know of my fund?  There were a litany of questions that I dying to ask.

During a call with my surgeon the next day, I learned that the Denver Foundation first inquired about my fund in late 2015.  Similar to a bank, a donor deposits money into an account managed by the Denver Foundation.  Once the donor decides on a cause, a directive is made to cut a check to the designated fund.  Unlike a grant that I applied for, this was a gift – a completely unexpected, selfless gift that I will be forever grateful for.

Unfortunately, the answer to all of my questions remain unanswered.  I can only guess that the person responsible follows my story.  So to the mystery person that made this donation – I hope you are reading – words alone cannot express my gratitude.  Your generosity and desire to help me in this fight is beyond appreciated, and while I know that I can never repay you, please know that I will do everything in my power to help the Yale Brain Tumor Center put this money to the best use possible in finding the cure for and treating benign and malignant brain tumors.  My fight will continue on for as long as I am able and until the cure is found – I hope.

In a world where we hear a lot of sad and depressing news, isn’t it refreshing and joyous to know that good truly exists?  For me, this is an easy question to answer.

To the generous donor – I will be indebted to you always and words will never be enough.

Auld Lang Syne

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2015 was a rollercoaster – full of ups and downs.  Off the bat, the year began down at Yale for surgery to remove a recurrence of the beast and ended with champagne and dinner with Ashley.  I was operated on a Thursday and released the following Saturday, a remarkably shorter stay than my first go-around.   photo 1My surgeon and medical staff did another amazing job in caring for me and I will be forever grateful for their support.

However, things greatly improved thereafter.  I returned to work just three weeks removed from my surgery and shocked everyone when I walked through those doors and made an immediate impact in my new role.  Furthermore, I attended my first meeting as a Director of the CT Brain Tumor Alliance and found myself amongst a terrific group of caring and compassionate survivors and caregivers who understood “me”.  As a board member, I had the opportunity to hear from various hospitals, doctors and oncologists about what they are doing in their quest to treat brain tumors and ultimately find the cure and it brought such hope to all of us in the room.  It’s not common that you will find a non-profit Board composed solely of survivors and caregivers, but that is what makes our organization so unique.  Together, with our Executive Director, we held numerous events in the state to raise funds and awareness, notably the Wines of March, Laughter on the Brain, Night of Hope and the Path of Hope.

Yet, with these “ups” came more downs.  As I’ve alluded to in previous posts, the Connecticut brain tumor community lost two wonderfully dedicated individuals who devoted themselves to brain tumor awareness and funding.  They will be forever missed, but our mission has been strengthened by their loss.  For me personally, last year’s Playing for the Cure: Brainstormin’ held so much more of an importance in the wake of those two losses.  And that is why I am so excited about the prospect of an even larger and grander scale event this year – to honor those we have lost, but to continue fighting for the cure to aid those who are still courageously fighting this disease.

My family, friends and I are already looking forward to September 16, 2016 for the third year of Playing for the Cure: Brainstormin’ at the Stony Creek Brewery in Branford, Connecticut.  I will be sure to provide updates as time moves on, so stay tuned!

But where else am I going to go with this blog from here, you ask?  Admittedly, I am at a crossroads.  On one hand, I have used this blog to tell you my story and unfold the past seven years into words.  Recently I received the news of a lifetime at my last MRI and I’ll return to Yale for another scan in May.  I thank you all for being there with me in spirit along the way.  But this is not the end.

I am going to put a new twist on things and offer up the opportunity for some guest bloggers to share their story, as each brain tumor diagnosis is not the same.  Before my diagnosis, I did not know anyone personally who was diagnosed with a brain tumor.  Unfortunately, I now hear about it more frequently than I would hope.  I will start sharing with you the progress and happenings of my alliance with the team at the Yale Brain Tumor Center.  I have been told that their doctors and nurses are all eagerly working toward creating new and exciting web content with me as their liaison, so this is pretty exciting!  Yes, I said exciting – if you had asked me on June 30, 2008 if I thought I’d be excited about brain tumor work, the answer certainly would have been NO.  Ohh, how things can change and how life can throw you into a direction you never expected.  I also hope to take on a greater fundraising role on my own and in conjunction with the CT Brain Tumor Alliance.

I have found my passion and my calling.  My parents always told me that “everything happens for a reason” but I never quite understood why I was dealt this diagnosis.  However, I am certainly a better and stronger person today because of it and have found something that makes me truly happy – I have found my passion.

I look forward to talking with you all in 2016 and hopefully connecting with more people on an individual basis in a greater capacity.  This is a new year and a new opportunity to explore all of our potential.