Continuing to Carry Allison's Message

It has been our hope and prayer that we would be able to continue to carry on the spirit of our daughter. In her short life, she inspired people and called many to action. In her honor, many bone marrow drives have been held. Just last week, a bone marrow registry drive was held in her memory and 49 more people signed up! We know of at least one life that was saved because a bone marrow donor match was found for a patient during a drive held in Allison's honor last summer. What a gift! She has called us into action and we will continue her fight to help save others!

We hope that her story will continue to help others find their donor match. Statistics show that approximately 10, 000 people are found in need of marrow matches each year, however, only about 50% ever find the match they need. Across the globe there are about 12 million registrants on the National Bone Marrow Registry, it only takes one match to be the change for a patient and their family. You could be that miracle! Please visit: www.bethematch.org to learn more about registering as a bone marrow donor. You can also learn more about the entire process by visiting that site.

On what would be Allison's 2nd birthday, May 13, 2010(8:30am - 8pm) our family, along with Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills(CA), will be hosting a blood drive and bone marrow registration drive to celebrate her life & memory. We hope that those who are able to, choose to participate. Please keep checking here for more information as the date gets closer. The drive will be held at Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills, 5601 De Soto Ave. We hope to see you there!

We miss her every single day, but our hearts are warmed by stories that you share with us about your memories of Allison. We still hurt, but by continuing to live the fighting spirit that she so wonderfully embodied, we are able to continue in our lives by facing each day and each new challenge in her memory. We thank each and every one of you for your thoughts, prayers, and love for our family. We appreciate it more than words can express.

With love,
Allison's Mommy & Daddy

Allison's Song

Bekken is a local musician who is a also a friend of the family. She was so touched and inspired by Allison's fight against Leukemia, that she was moved to write her song Prayer. It wasn't until the week before Allison's [almost sudden] passing that the song was completed. The first time we were able to hear it was at Allison's service in October, and we were in absolute awe. She was able to capture so much of our journey in her music. Bekken...we thank you for sharing your talent and your work with us.

Please take a listen! Jennifer Ozuna, Allison's cousin created this slide show with some of the family's favorite pictures to celebrate Allison's life and battle with Leukemia.

Bekken can be found on Myspace at: www.myspace.com/bekken or become a fan on Facebook. To listen to samples of her other songs, please find her on iTunes.

Wow! It has been quite awhile...

What a time it has been! We've gone through many different emotions and had new and different life experiences over the last two and a half months. There have been ups and downs like we have never experienced before. Grief is a very strange animal. It can take many different forms and can have unexpected effects. Sometimes it ravages every ounce of your being, others it can snuggle you and be oddly comforting. There are times it can stop you dead in your tracks and keep you from doing anything at all, and other times it can be a great motivator. The hardest part is, that it is so unpredictable.

The holidays were extremely difficult. This is a time for family and a time where children are celebrated. It was different for our family this year. We had to find new things to fill our days and nights. And although we only had Allison for one Christmas holiday, we were able to build wonderful memories in 2008. We definitely mourned not being able to share with her again in 2009. What we did have though, was one another. Shaun and I leaned on each other for support, love, and kindness. We were able to share our happiest memories of Allison with each other and through the tears came laughter. I am extremely grateful for Shaun's love and support. We looked at each other on New Year's day and realized we had survived the holiday season...if not by the very skin of our teeth. We lived to share our experience.

In the new year, we've continued on our path of growing our marriage and working through the pain of losing our only daughter. It has yet to get easier, and what's even stranger is that as time goes on it only becomes more confusing. Why this is, I'm not sure. But in order to get past it, I must walk through it. I put one foot in front of the other and do each day as it comes. Sometimes that just means putting one foot in front of the other to get to the couch and snuggle with a movie and my favorite blanket. Other times, one step at a time means getting ready and leaving the house for a full day of errands and lunch with friends to keep my spirits up. The most important thing is allowing myself to do what I need to do to keep me living life, and just being nice to myself.

None of this is easy. Even I can't find the words to describe the emotional roller coaster. Of course there are days when I laugh(at least a little every day! :) ) and I cry a little almost everyday. It's ok. I hope that if I let the feelings hit me and I ride the wave when it comes, that it WILL get easier or at least a little softer in time. Only time will tell.....

Until next time,

Nicole - Allison's Mommy

P.S.

We have some new things in the works! Come back next week to find out what it is!!! ;)