A Remembrance Video of Mattie

Thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive!

Dear Mattie Blog Readers,

It means a great deal to me that you take the time to write and to share your thoughts, feelings, and reflections on Mattie's battle and death. Your messages are very meaningful and help support me through very challenging times. I am 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 have stopped writing on September 9, 2010. However, like my journey with grief there is so much that 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 me, and most importantly thank you for keeping Mattie's memory alive.


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



November 14, 2019

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Thursday, November 14, 2019

 Tonight's picture was taken in November of 2004. Mattie was two years old and had just gotten his first table and chairs. He was very excited to have this space. Space to play on, to color, and to create! If there was a flat surface around, sure enough Mattie would transform it with tracks and trains. 

Quote of the day: The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away. ~ Pablo Picasso
Peter and I divided and conquered today. I continued dealing with the candy drive, and Peter hopped on a plane for Louisville, KY. Why? Because he had a meeting with the CEO of Aetna, Kentucky. We got connected to this CEO through Spencer, a social worker we presented with and met at professional social workers conference (in Phoenix, April 2019). We are working hard at introducing insurers to the Psychosocial Standards of Care and inspiring them to endorse the Standards of Care and to partner with us on our vision to coordinate a demonstration project. Such a project would help assess outcomes (quality patient care, patient satisfaction, and cost of care) of implementing the Standards at 3-4 treatment sites around the Country. 
My first candy delivery today was to the Schar Cancer Institute in Fairfax, VA. I got to meet the childhood cancer clinic's child life professional and art therapist. Both lovely! 
I then drove to the Ronald McDonald House in Falls Church, VA. All I can say is.... thank goodness for GPS. It makes traversing our region much easier for me. As it is stressful enough schlepping candy, much less being worried about getting lost. 

 Each site that I visited this week, thanked me profusely for sorting the candy. They know, as I do, that it makes the candy last longer and also makes restocking easier. 
I am so happy our candy drive can support the important work that Nourish Now does in Maryland. Nourish Now is a 501c3 nonprofit food bank, specializing in food recovery and providing donations from grocers, caterers, restaurants, bakeries, and other food donors for the benefit of children, families, and the elderly, as well as shelters, food pantries, and other organizations working to end hunger.
My two friends, Ann and Catherine, drove 500 pounds of candy today to Nourish Now in Rockville, MD. 
Posted by The Brown Family (DC) at 5:09 PM

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