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Elevator
speech version - Xander got sick, he is doing well, we are grateful so I
am running the Boston Marathon to raise money for the clinic that saved
his life by curing his cancer....| n | n | n | n | n |
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The Meche Family Website
contact: MMeche@WSArchitects.com
about PlatypusandSalamander.com - in our house silliness prevails, particularly when it comes to the use of language. After Xander was born my wife started substituting "Platypus and Salamander" into those parts of the conversation normally occupied by "Atticus and Alexander". At this point each child has his own alter ego and logo to go with.
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The picture below is my youngest son Alexander
who was diagnosed with
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in June of 2006. The photo
shown was taken shortly after the diagnosis while he was inpatient
at MassGeneral. I am happy to report that Xander—my favorite
nickname for him—has been clear of leukemia for over a year now and
even though he will continue with treatments for quite some time,
his prognosis is very good.
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About this time last year Alexander was asked to
be the patient partner of Robin Kievit who was also a volunteer and
fundraiser on last years Marathon team. The night before the race,
at the traditional spaghetti dinner I made a decision to try and
become Alexander’s next partner if I could manage to get a place on
this year’s team. I bought some new shoes and hit the road. At this
point I am on the team, Xander is my patient partner, I am in
training and our whole family is conspiring to get me across that
finish line in April. I am now up to about 40 miles a week and my
long runs are getting really long. The last one was 23 miles. If I
can avoid injury, finishing the marathon shouldn’t be too much of a
problem. The question is “how fast?”
It probably comes as no surprise that my motivation for running this marathon is gratitude. While Xander’s treatment protocol comes with no guarantees, I do believe that the folks at MassGeneral saved his life. Diagnosis day was like a kick in the gut—at first it was a struggle to even say the word leukemia—but it doesn’t take long for the parenting instinct to kick in. The transition to patient parent is quick but full of uncertainty and tears. Xander’s primary care physician tried in vain to reassure us but it wasn’t until we arrived at MassGeneral that we began to understand what we were facing. Immediately after arriving at the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology clinic and meeting Dr. Alison Friedman we began to gather some optimism. It is hard to describe in a few sentences but Dr. Friedman projected a sense of concern and care coupled with confidence and professionalism. Most notably she used the word cure easily and often. Over the next few hours we met more caregivers, members of Xander’s team, with a similarly determined and optimistic attitude. There is no mistaking the fact that these folks are in the business of curing cancer. As I understand it, the funds we raise will go directly to support the Cancer Care for Kids by supporting research into the causes of childhood cancer and to develop new treatments for these cancers. I would be most grateful if you would consider sending a gift. If you give through this website, the money will go directly to them. You can also mail me a check (made out to Massachusetts General Hospital) and I will pass it along. Thanks--Mark
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