Lauren's Legacy: December 2012

Friday, December 21, 2012

12:21 on 12/21/12

(Claire G, Taylor, and Lauren on vacation in Canada 2007.)

Today is a pretty interesting day in history too ... it's a festive number (12/21/12) and the projected "end of the world" based on the Mayan calendar. Funny that it was simply the end of a calendar cycle for the Mayans, not the projected end of the world. I wouldn't have put it past the Mayan's to know it, however. They're pretty brilliant.

For our family, it isn't the end of the world, or even a more important day because of the numbers (although we find both of them interesting.) It is important to us because it is another birthday -- and since Lauren would have made a big celebratory deal out of the numbers and the birthday boy, I figured I would help her out. (I loved to help her with her creations to "one up" her big brother in the "I love you MOST" game and thought I would seize the opportunity to update their competition. She liked to win.)

So, Happy Birthday, big brother!!! ... In honor of your special day, 12 gifts of $21 dollars each in Christmas DOUGH were donated to Oncology families at PCMC in need of a little extra help this holiday season. It's Lauren's way of saying ... I LOVE YOU MOST!!

(A special thanks to Juanita W. and Karen L. who donated the cash sufficient for Lauren's Foundation to give the last half of those gifts.)

A Happy 12/21/12, Happy Birthday, and a Merry, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year from the

Living Lauren's Legacy Foundation!!!

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Wishing on recurring numbers!!

Living Lauren's Legacy

Hope you all had a great 12/12/12!!!

(This is a watercolor painting of Lauren playing in the ocean when she was 8 years old. This painting and another pastel of the same image were donated to PCMC and Huntsman today as a completion of the 12 months of projects for Lauren's foundation and in celebration of Lauren's habit of making wishes on recurring numbers.)

The book about Lauren's wish (Happily Ever After: The Power of Perspective) is still available if you are interested in reading and/or purchasing it. It has been intentionally removed from the website, but if you would like more information, please contact me.

May all of your wishes come true!

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Happy 12/12/12

12/12/12

For the projects of November and December, two paintings will be donated to PCMC and Huntsman Cancer Center of Lauren playing in the ocean when she was just about 8 years old. In addition, 12 simple gifts for Christmas are being donated to the Hem/Onc Clinic at PCMC.

The 12 months of projects aimed at honoring Lauren by helping to make others wishes come true has been small in scale, but large in intention. All in all, it's been a sweet way to honor Lauren and try to give a little cheer in her beautiful memory. We'll continue to give our best efforts to live her legacy.

October Tricks and Treats

Lauren's first Halloween.

(She was "Dino" and her siblings were

Fred, Wilma, and Pebbles from the Flintstones.)

For some Halloween cheer, Lauren's foundation donated big buckets of Halloween Candy to be distributed at PCMC and many $5.00 gifts to help families purchase prescription medication who were in need.

August and September

August:
Just over two hundred items of electronics, clothing, toys and books were donated to the Humanitarian Aid projects of the LDS church for distribution to areas hit by natural disasters.
September:
Three separate monetary donations were made to three charitable organizations aimed at helping with the medical bills for two men and one woman struggling with Cancer, Multiple Sclerosis, and Cystic Fibrosis.

June and July projects

June and July found Lauren's Foundation traveling with humanitarians to Peru and Guatemala. Each of the two trips were filled with great folks who like to "leave places a little better than they found them" and the donations they made to rural schools in each country were pretty significant. They were great teams for Lauren's foundation to be part of.