Mattie Miracle Walk 2023 was a $131,249 success!

Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation Promotional Video

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to us that you take the time to write to us and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful to us and help support us through very challenging times. To you we are forever grateful. As my readers know, I promised to write the blog for a year after Mattie's death, which would mean that I could technically stop writing on September 9, 2010. However, at the moment, I feel like our journey with grief still needs to be processed and fortunately I have a willing support network still committed to reading. Therefore, the blog continues on. If I should find the need to stop writing, I assure you I will give you advanced notice. In the mean time, thank you for reading, thank you for having the courage to share this journey with us, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


As Mattie would say, Ooga Booga (meaning, I LOVE YOU)! Vicki and Peter



The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation celebrates its 7th anniversary!

The Mattie Miracle Cancer Foundation was created in the honor of Mattie.

We are a 501(c)(3) Public Charity. We are dedicated to increasing childhood cancer awareness, education, advocacy, research and psychosocial support services to children, their families and medical personnel. Children and their families will be supported throughout the cancer treatment journey, to ensure access to quality psychosocial and mental health care, and to enable children to cope with cancer so they can lead happy and productive lives. Please visit the website at: www.mattiemiracle.com and take some time to explore the site.

We have only gotten this far because of people like yourself, who have supported us through thick and thin. So thank you for your continued support and caring, and remember:

.... Let's Make the Miracle Happen and Stomp Out Childhood Cancer!

A Remembrance Video of Mattie

September 30, 2019

Monday, September 30, 2019

Monday, September 30, 2019

Tonight's picture was taken in September of 2006. That day we took Mattie on a walk at one of the local nature preserves. Something we typically did every weekend, regardless of the weather. I remember this was our first and last visit to this park because it was very rocky and was more like a hike than a walk. Nonetheless, Mattie was up for the adventure! 









Quote of the day: Be BOLD like a cicada-pipe the heck up. Maureen Joyce Connolly


Today was quite the day. Mid-day, I went with Peter to see a gastroenterologist at the hospital where Mattie was born. As both of us now need a colonoscopy. My internist suggested I see one specialist, and Peter's internist suggested another. So we figured we would visit both doctors to determine who we liked better. 

We arrived at the specialist's office and Peter signed in. What we immediately noticed was that everyone around us including the office staff was speaking Spanish. That was noteworthy since I have never experienced this before, and I see MANY MANY doctors in a year's time. While Peter was checking in, I noticed a sign on the wall that read..... NO credit cards or debit cards accepted. I literally read this sign and started to laugh and then said out loud.... would they liked to be paid in chocolate, alcohol, or clothing. The patient next to me burst out in laughter and then she (the only other English speaker in the waiting room) said to me they only want cash and who travels with that much cash?! Good point!

I should have taken a photo of the office, as the waiting room looked like the size of a coat closet. It was old, tired, and the walls behind the front desk where the staff were sitting were covered from floor to ceiling with cards. It looked totally unprofessional. Meanwhile, we waited in the office for 35 minutes, at which point Peter asked when the doctor was going to see him. The answer was, "I don't know, there are two other patients ahead of you!" NOT the answer we wanted to hear. Before this receptionist knew what hit her, both of us were on her case. 

This doctor is a one man practice, FIRST problem, and clearly his staff doesn't know how to balance his appointment calendar. So instead, patients landed up sitting a LONG time. It really provided us with no confidence at all, if this is how the front of his office is run. So needless to say, we got up and left, without seeing the doctor. However, I felt awful for all the other patients waiting to be seen in the cubby hole of an office. I wanted to stick around and advocate for them, but I knew it wasn't my place to do so! Therefore one doctor down and onto the next consult. However, I have already researched a doctor at MedStar Georgetown, because as I say to Peter all the time, if I have a medical problem, one has to go to Georgetown. Sure it is filled with its own dysfunction, but the competency of the physicians are worth the hassle. 

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