Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Tuesday, May 24, 2016 -- Mattie died 349 weeks ago today.

Tonight's picture was taken on May 5, 2002. I did not take Mattie out to public spaces in the beginning, but we did go out with Peter's family to an outdoor area filled with restaurants and shops. Mattie handled the day very well and seemed to enjoy the outing. While out, he received this wonderful bunny, a bunny which Mattie held onto for quite some time. It was one of his favorites and overall Mattie was NOT a stuff animal kind of kid. 


Quote of the day: The leader who exercises power with honor will work from the inside out, starting with himself. ~  Blaine Lee

Mattie Miracle LOVES it volunteers! There were over 60 volunteers at the Walk this year, many of whom have been with us since the Foundation was incorporated in 2009. We could never host such a successful event without these dedicated individuals.

We are also VERY GRATEFUL to our community partners who attend our Walk and provide food, fun items, and activities for attendees. All the proceeds from those sales were donated to Mattie Miracle. A BIG THANK YOU TO.........................

1) Clyde's of Tysons Corner
2) Rack Impact Entertainment
3) Play-Well Teknologies
4) Seeds of Hope
5) Sprout Kitchen Gardens
6) Bob Weiman and his SSSAS 5th Grade Magic Show

Christine and Jennifer have run our registration tent seven years in a row! Working registration isn't as easy as it may sound. Large groups can show up at one time and this team has to process them into the event and also accept donations. 

This dynamo on the ground dressed in black is Carolyn. Carolyn has been our raffle chair for seven years and is invaluable, along with her husband Don, who heads up our Walk logistics team!

This adorable couple runs our bake sale. Marisa has been a long standing volunteer with Mattie Miracle and even helped care for Mattie when he was battling cancer. Marisa worked with Georgetown Cupcake this year and surprised me with cupcakes that had the Mattie Miracle Logo on them!!!

Can you see the sun on the cupcakes?!

This was the fantastic Clyde's of Tysons Corner team who worked with us this year. Thank you Heather (Sous Chef) and Eddie for working so hard! With 30MPH winds and cool temperatures, hot foods were very popular and needed this year. We are deeply grateful to Clyde's of Tysons Corner for their continued generosity with the Foundation. 

Two years ago I contacted Gigmasters (an on line entertainment referral site) looking for a DJ for our walk. I put out a request and several DJs responded to me with various price quotes. Sergio's quote caught my attention because he gave me a price quote of $0. Sergio said he would offer his services pro bono because he valued Mattie Miracle's work and wanted to help us raise funds. Needless to say we hired Sergio, and he is now a part of our Walk family! Thank you Sergio for keeping us moving to a great beat!!!

Food operations at the Walk is NO EASY feat. First our friend and board member, Ann, sends out requests in the community for snack and drink item donations! Then Ann and the entire Tilch family transport and set up all these items at the food truck on the day of the event. Much thanks Ann, Patricia, and Bernie for seven years of incredible service.

The teenager in the blue fleece is Ellie. Ellie and Mattie went to preschool together. At each Walk, Ellie features and sales hand crafted items to walk participants. 100% of the proceeds go to Mattie Miracle. This year's item was her Seeds of Hope flower pots! Don't you just love these hand painted pots with forget me not seeds in them?!

Thank you Play-Well Teknologies for providing hands on fun, creativity, and engineering challenges to kids of all ages! This is a VERY popular tent at our Walks.

This is Bob Weiman, AKA.... the Magic Man. Bob taught Mattie how to do magic while he was battling cancer. In fact, at the Mattie March, and event that his care community planned for him in May of 2009, Mattie performed several tricks with Bob to a large audience. The Walk wouldn't be the same without Bob. It is a meaningful tradition!

Thank you Judy (COO of Sprout Kitchen Gardens) for joining us this year and helping our participants sprout their own gardens!!!