To the editor:
Contestants line up at the cornhole fundraiser at Codman Community Farms.
On behalf of our whole family, I want to thank the community for their outpouring of support and generosity at our fundraiser last weekend. We hosted our first (hopefully annual) Brain Games Corn Hole tournament benefiting moyamoya disease research at Boston Children’s Hospital. There were numerous sponsors and donors that made the event possible.
This past May, our 4-year-old was diagnosed with moyamoya disease, a rare brain disorder, and in June, she had bilateral brain surgery. Thankfully, the best surgeon in the world who also helped pioneer the surgical procedure, Dr. Ed Smith, is located here at Boston Children’s Hospital. Kalea’s cousin was diagnosed 12 years ago with the same disease, and his family’s fund-raising inspired our event. Without their fund raising, genetic testing advances would not have been made (that our children are undergoing now), as well as several lives saved from procedures perfected from his funding.
In the wake of our Lincoln fundraiser, we thank the police department for cooking all of the food, Dan Pereira with Parks and Recreation for transporting tents and setup/organization, Twisted Tree Café for numerous gift cards for raffle prizes, Boon Ice for donating all the ice to keep drinks cold, and last but not least Codman Community Farms and Pete Lowy, who made the location and atmosphere perfect! Most importantly, we thank the countless volunteers (adults as well as eighth-grade students) who went out of their way to show up early, carry tables and set up, serve food, and assist in the kids arts and crafts tables and bouncy houses.
There have been so many times since moving here five years ago that we have appreciated this community. However, the past five months have truly made us grateful to be part of this town. The saying “it takes a village” has never felt more true. Community is defined as a unified body of individuals. That could not be seen anymore clearly as it was shown yesterday.
The event alone raised just over $12,000. Our online fundraising page at www.doofamilyfun.com is currently at about $27,500, and has been climbing over the course of today. For those of you unaware, every penny of the event is going directly into the surgeon’s trust to further research. He is one of the surgeons who pioneered the surgery that has saved our daughter’s life.
The Doo family.
Additionally, I have an entire carload of toys, puzzles, and books that we are donating on Monday, Oct. 28 to the ninth-floor hospital play rooms. Kalea is beyond excited to share these items with a place that made her hospital stay more enjoyable. The generosity of friends, family, and people we have not met before has just overwhelmed us.
We hope that everyone enjoyed the day. Our thanks seems so trivial and insignificant for the kindness that everyone has shown, from the bottom of our hearts we do truly thank you for everything! Hope to see y’all again next year!
Sincerely,
The Doo family: Bryan and Brianna, Mikayla, Kailani, Alana, Kalea, Maddox, and Atticus
7 Reiling Pond Rd., Lincoln