Dana & Sarah - Marathon Honoring Evan & Owen

Dear family, friends, and colleagues...

We want to share some upcoming news with you that is very close to our hearts. We have registered for the Honolulu Marathon this coming December 14th in honor of two of our dear friends from college. We are running this marathon in honor of their two sons, Evan and Owen, to raise funds to find a cure for Leigh's Disease and Juveline Type 1 Diabetes. We plan to give 100% of the donations to the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. We hope you will help us reach our goal of raising $5,000 for each cause (for a total of $10,000). Please help us to achieve our goal and know that each mile we run is for something much bigger than all of us.

Our two friends, Dena and Lori, have endured major heartache and tragedy and they've given us the courage to run....

Dena Hollar suffered the worst tragedy that a parent can suffer this past June 17th, 2008 when her 3-year-old son, Owen, was taken by a rare affliction called Leigh's Disease (a Mitochondrial Disease). Owen was born completely healthy, and he did not start having symptoms until he was 18 months old. He lost certain skills such as walking, sitting, eating, and talking, and in spite of his disease, people were drawn to Owen because of his ability to keep smiling and his beautiful blue eyes. Leigh's Disease is a progressive neurometabolic disorder with a general onset in infancy or childhood, often after a viral infection, but it can also occur in teens and adults. The prognosis for Leigh's Disease is poor; depending on the defect, individuals typically only live for a few years to their mid-teens. Every thirty minutes a child is born that will develop mitochondrial disease by the age of 10, and yet there is no cure for Leigh's Disease. We will run on December 14th, and we ask you to please honor Owen's memory by helping us to find a cure.

Lori Wamstad deals with a different challenge. She endures the constant daily worry and struggle of taking care of her 3-year-old son, Evan, who was diagnosed with Juvenile Type I Diabetes on his 2nd birthday. Evan has had to grow up incredibly fast in order to fight to be healthy, and he is a true example of courage and strength, including testing himself several times daily to ensure that he doesn't slip into a diabetic coma. Each year over 15,000 children are diagnosed with diabetes in the U.S. That's 40 children per day. While treatment with insulin is life saving, it is not a cure. Our hope is that one day a cure will be found, and you can help us honor little Evan by making a contribution.

Please honor these families and donate by clicking on the "Donate" button.

We thank you in advance for your support.

Warmly,
Dana & Sarah

Again, 100% of your donations will be given to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation.