Susan G. Komen 3-Day

Pegs' sister, Nik, asked that I let you know that she'll be walking 60 miles over the course of three days (October 5, 6, and 7) for an event called the Susan G. Komen 3-Day™. Net proceeds from the 3-Day support ground-breaking research and scientific programs, as well as grants for education, screening and treatment programs at both the national and local level in an effort to eradicate breast cancer. 

Please show Nik your support by making a donation in memory of Pegs.  To make a donation, go to The3Day.org, click on "Donate" and search for Nik's personal fundraising page under the name "Nikoleta Alexandropoulos".  Nik's goal is to raise $2,300; with your help, I'm confident we can get there.  Click here to visit Nik's personal page. 

Thanks to everyone in advance, and be sure to let me know if you or someone you know is participating in an event near you so I can help spread the word.

Pegs' Birthday

As a lot of you know, it was Pegs' birthday today, her 36th. When I got to the office this morning I had already received a number of e-mails and Facebook posts expressing birthday greetings and well-wishes, and they continued to come in throughout the day. Thanks so much to everyone who wrote, called, texted, posted or otherwise took a moment of your day to think about Pegs.

When Pegs and I first met, she told me that she wasn't particularly big on birthdays. She said that name days were more important in her family, as were religious holidays; birthdays were typically a more muted affair. But in 2009, as Pegs was finishing up her first series of chemotherapy treatments, she told me that she wanted a big party for her birthday that year: lots of friends, food, drinks ... the works.  Unfortunately, she didn't express this desire until her birthday was already upon us, a moment when I was coming home from the office well past midnight every night.  Fortunately, Pegs' friend Brooke swooped in to the rescue and helped me find a great venue: a rooftop apartment with a fantastic view of the Eiffel Tower.  I booked a caterer, bought a bunch of booze and invited all of our anglophone friends in Paris, and in short order we had ourselves a birthday party.  It might just have been the champagne, but as I recall everyone had a great time, especially Pegs.  It was so wonderful to see her happy that night after all she had been through; she was surrounded by people she loved and who loved her, and she was able to forget about all of her worries and just enjoy herself for the first time in a long while.  For those of you who were there, thank you so much for helping to make that night so special; for those who couldn't be there, I hope that you can appreciate how happy Pegs was in the pictures below.  Happy birthday, my love.